A Comet Appears
by SamLovesChuck
Summary: Sarah, Stanford student and partnered with Bryce, befriends Chuck and unwittingly sets his path in a whole new direction. Chuck's destiny is not as random as he might think as he struggles to define himself and his limits when introduced to a new and exciting world.
1. First Day of My Life

A/N: After reading almost every popular (and not so popular) Chuck story out there, and loving all of it by the way, I decided to take a crack at it. I quickly realized reading is a whole lot easier than writing, so to any and all writers out there, I have grown a new appreciation for your efforts. Also, happy five year anniversary! Five years ago today, the television world was changed forever. Even after all this time, I'm still in love with every version of these characters, canon or otherwise, so I did my best to do them justice.

Disclaimer: I do not own Chuck, NBC and WB do. "A Comet Appears" belongs to The Shins and "First Day of My Life" belongs to Bright Eyes. I'm not making any money off of this, so please don't sue.

* * *

**The Leland ****Stanford**** Junior University aka Stanford University**

**10 March 2003**

**13:44 PST**

"You're a dead man, Chuck Bartowski!"

The threat shouldn't have scared him. He had been in this scenario many times before. So why was fear spreading through him like wildfire? No, not this time. No fear. _Focus, Bartowski. _

The enemy was out of ammo, that was Chuck's advantage. Chuck may be slower, less stealthy and more awkward, but the enemy can only dance around him for so long.

One-on-one, just you and your gun, in a library of all places.

Florescent lighting left the large room well lit, which would've been a good thing for his clumsy nature, but it also made it harder to hide. The endless rows of books almost made him dizzy, unable to search for his target. He just couldn't focus with all of the bright colors of the various books distracting him. Eyes shifting, he weaved in and out of the shelves, pressing his back against the cold hard wall before moving forward.

The dust in the air threatened to make him sneeze and give away his position, putting him even more on edge. What was worse was that he could barely hear anything from the other inhabitant of the abandoned library, save the random threat called out from the last place he'd expect. He tried for stealth by treading with light footsteps, but ended up squeaking half the time. And here was the enemy, effortlessly gliding across the room, laughing at his bumbling opponent and teasing him with threats spoken in an overconfident voice. He hated feeling so inferior. He hated that down to his very nature, he would always be the one to trip over his own shoelaces. Stupid Chucks.

Coming up from his position of crouching and hiding behind a bookshelf, Chuck moves across the aisle to another section of the library, just missing the enemy peeking around the corner. Running through the maze of books, he was still oblivious to the enemy spotting him around every corner. Because really, Chuck Bartowski was in way over his head. He had been in these situations plenty of times before, and it never, ever, turned out well for him.

The enemy was more experienced, better trained, and more athletic. Able to anticipate all of his moves, the enemy waited patiently for Chuck to fall into his trap. They scurried around like mice that lost the scent for the cheese they so desperately wanted, seemingly avoiding the other at every turn.

They were now parallel; the only thing separating them was a bookshelf. Chuck saw a table and decided to slide to it and use it for cover, all the while seemingly unaware of the other body next to him jumping over the same table. Summersaulting, the enemy landed silently and walked right behind Chuck, whose back was to him. He had Chuck right where he wanted him.

"All right, give it up. I know you're out of ammo," Chuck shouted, still completely unaware of where the enemy was.

"Buddy…" Chuck heard a familiar voice say, but it was coming from a place he was not at all expecting. Startled, he jumped up from his crouching position and whipped his weapon forward, aimed at point blank. _Finally,_ _I got him now._ Because there standing behind him, was his ridiculously good-looking rival with his hands up in surrender. There was a light in his eyes though, and he wore an expression that should not have been worn by someone who was about to meet their fate.

"You wouldn't fire on an unarmed guy," he said simply, knowing what a bleeding heart Chuck could be. His heart, the enemy realized, would always be his downfall.

"I might, it's hardly sportsman like but…" Chuck replied, but it was a futile effort at bravado. Both Chuck and the enemy knew that he would never do such a thing. Faced with a man unarmed, Chuck Bartowski could never pull the trigger. This victory was in his hands if he'd only take it, but he didn't.

The opportunity had passed for Chuck to shoot and they both knew it, but remained at a standstill. The enemy knew he could do as he pleased, comforted by the fact that Chuck would never shoot him now.

The enemy, clearly exaggerating his curiosity, pointed out a thick history book. "What's this?"

Chuck had no idea how to react. _Weren't we in the middle of something? Really, talking about a book, now? Well, maybe it would be a good read…_

In a flash, the enemy fired his gun and Chuck immediately felt a pressure in the middle of his forehead.

He was too shocked to move. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. He never thought this was possible, he'd been counting damn it, and he had been so careful. He spent so much time practicing, just dreaming of the moment he would take his victory. All of this time preparing, and this was how it ends.

"Gotcha! Larkin over Bartowski, again," Bryce said with a smirk, that same smirk he always got when he beat his friend. Chuck sighed and looked down in defeat, removing the dart from his forehead. He'd always come in second to that guy.

"Okay fine Bryce, you win again. I don't know how you do it buddy. I really thought I had you this time," Chuck admitted sheepishly. There was really no point in wallowing; he'd already done that the first few losses. Maybe, someday, he'd learn the Bryce's secrets.

"I'm just that good," Bryce said triumphantly. He may play it off as a joke, but Chuck was constantly impressed with his friend's skills. Since their junior year, the game had gotten ten times harder for Chuck, who had originally been able to put up a fair fight. Now in their senior year, Bryce had become untouchable.

"C'mon, let's grab a bite before we head back. I've got a test to study for." Chuck, being the true nerd that he was, made it a rule to always have food after exercise. Running around for an hour may not be much for the gymnast/track star/natural athlete Bryce Larkin, but Chuck was dying for some good pizza.

"Alright…oh hey! Mind if I introduce you to my new lady friend? I've been showing her off to all of the guys this week." _Great, another addition to the list of things that make Bryce's life perfect, a new girlfriend. She's probably gorgeous._ Chuck was suddenly grateful that he had Jill so he didn't look completely pathetic next to his super star friend.

"Sure, sounds good."

Bryce made a quick phone call to 'Sarah,' presumably his new girlfriend. They walked together towards their favorite lunch place on campus, easy banter flowing between them.

Well, semi-easy. Bryce was a little more closed off recently. To go from giving explicit detail about one's weekend to simply stating that it was fine – it was always just 'fine,' never 'okay' or 'good' – was an adjustment for Chuck. A welcome adjustment, considering he couldn't help but compare their vastly different social lives, but still. Perhaps this new "lady friend" of his could help Bryce open up more.

* * *

**Patxi's Chicago Pizza**

**10 March 2003**

**14:02 PST**

Sarah sat patiently waiting for Bryce and his friend Chuck to arrive at a local pizza place. _Chuck_, what a stupid name. Unfortunately, this was her role now. She and Bryce were partners, and they had to sell the cover. But, Jesus, why did it have to be so hard? Sarah considered Bryce to be a good person; he was focused, smart, and intelligent. Maybe a bit cocky, but that came with the territory of being a government agent. Confidence was everything. His friends, however, were a different story.

They were just so conceited and arrogant. She had enough experience with men like them to be able to ignore their cheesy pickup lines, disgusting innuendos, and wandering eyes. Cocky nerds were like a completely new species. Nevertheless, Bryce promised that Chuck was different.

He had warned her of the hurricane of geek that would be coming her way, and she soon turned skeptical. _A sea of jocks and one dorky friend? Please, the guy's probably just some wannabe sci-fi game designer way too lost in his own self-proclaimed genius to notice that yes, women actually do exist outside of porn. _She was curious, Bryce had called him his best friend after all, but this had to be the meeting she was least looking forward to.

The CIA put any important or time-consuming missions on hold so that they could catch up on any classes they'd missed. The CIA certainly had pull with the university, but it was the principle of the thing. Agents still had a right to get a real, proper education. She and Bryce had also used the time to establish a cover relationship with his friends, who would now no longer be questioning her constant presence or Bryce's more-than-occasional absences.

She looked up from her post at the small table to see a familiar face. Slick brown hair, charming smile, defined jaw. _He was quite a looker._ That much, she really couldn't deny. Any heterosexual woman would find his chiseled body, classically handsome looks and piercing blue eyes attractive.

Still, she couldn't help but notice that he was there alone. She gave up studying for this? He was the one who kept insisting she meet this incredible friend of his, and now she was interrupted for nothing. She silently cursed him, but immediately felt guilty. Perhaps his not-so-nice friend had stood him up. Or maybe, just maybe, he just wanted an excuse to take her out for a lunch date.

Bryce and Sarah had already been intimate for some time. They had been partners for nearly a year, and engaging in a personal relationship for about six months. Both agents wanted to keep as much from the public eye as possible, which included any sort of partnership that may have formed between them. No one can be too careful. A young athletic couple that paraded themselves around and happened to be missing for days at a time could draw the attention of some enemies. Plus, if she were to be completely honest, the forbidden nature of it all made it that much more exciting. It was only recently that his frat brothers started teasing him about seeing some blonde bombshell with him all the time. Hence, the new cover.

Now that the cat was out the bag, at least they could work more efficiently. Less sneaking around, and less distractions. Still, she was an adrenaline junky after all, and she wasn't sure how their relationship might change after this. _Would the excitement be gone?_ Sarah inwardly scoffs. Of course not, they were still spies after all.

The missions, the danger, the life saving and the time spent together was what eventually lead to their more physical relationship. One mission, he had saved her by killing the man that was about to shoot her. She had never been more grateful. The world they lived in was lonely, and he was a nice enough person. She often felt so depraved, so broken, and just so damaged. Yet, he wanted _her_. The constant threat of death, the intensity, the pressure and the horrors associated with her job just made her want to hang on to anything, anyone at all, that could provide her with an escape. And there Bryce was – daring, dashing, and well, just _there_. So that night, they consummated their budding partnership.

The sex was good. Both were trained in the art of seduction, and both knew what they were doing well enough. So they continued their relationship, being more than friends with benefits, but not quite the loving, happy couple. If she had to label it, she would describe her feelings for him as infatuation, or even genuine affection. Not love, if such a thing even existed.

Still, they didn't have to label it because neither really cared to. They understood each other and relied on each other. To call it a romance would be an overstatement. It was superficial intimacy, not the all-consuming love the movies and books advertise. That kind of relationship simply couldn't exist in her world. She was no illusionist, she knew what she and Bryce had was shallow, but it was enough for her.

They kept professional at work. The mission came first for both of them, no matter how much they cared for each other. And maybe after a tough mission, if they so felt inclined, they would engage in some relaxing extracurricular activities. It was ridiculous, if she really thought about it, to be Agent Walker the coworker one day, and Sarah the lover the next. Maybe she had a distorted view of how normal relationships should function, but if two people were really in love, the time of day and the situation shouldn't matter how they'd act towards one another. Then again, she was anything but normal.

To even consider being in a normal relationship with another agent was absurd in and of itself. She had to be professional and focused if she wanted to survive. This job meant everything to her. It was her redemption from a previous life of criminal activities, her validation for giving up her innocence, her hope for a new and purposeful life. To throw away her career now for a boy, for romance, would be a slap in the face to all of her penniless victims, her imprisoned father, her worried mother and even an innocent woman left dead on a street corner in Paris.

Every decision she made in her life lead her to be a spy, so she had better be a damn good one. That meant she dropped all thoughts of normalcy to be extraordinary. The life she chose was good, noble, exciting and everything most people could ever want. To be an attractive, independent, skillful government agent was the perfect life, she decided, loneliness be damned.

But that was why she had Bryce, who she noticed was calling out to his friend Chuck outside of the pizza shop. _I guess he decided to show up after all,_ she thought. _Oh well, time to meet yet another person I could never be able to relate to._

* * *

Chuck couldn't understand why he was so nervous. Sure, some of Bryce's friends were a lot to handle, but this somehow seemed different, more important. _Maybe this girl is the one for him,_ Chuck reasoned. He smiled, thinking of his beautiful and smart girlfriend, the one that was perfect for him.

He felt a sudden bitterness towards his best friend that shocked him. He believed in love, so he should be happy for Bryce. Bryce was living the good life, one with a new romance, a beautiful girl and endless hope. So much hope.

Maybe Chuck and Jill's relationship had fizzled, but Chuck refused to accept it. He loved her; he had to after being with her for all this time. He had been putting everything he had into the relationship to keep it alive, but wondered if Jill even noticed.

She could be so hard to read sometimes. That thought scared him, considering he used to know everything about her. Like any other beautiful woman that had paid him any attention, he made sure to study her, learn all he could about her to make sure she stayed happy. After all, being a nerd had its privileges. He knew that she pouted her lips when annoyed, and she bit them when she was hiding something. Clenched fists resting on the hips meant he was about to get his ass chewed out and then they probably wouldn't be talking for a few days. He took special note of her smile though, and knew when it was forced. It had been a lot lately.

So meeting a new woman, one that could make his best friend as happy as Chuck had once been, could certainly be nerve-racking. Chuck knew the importance of love in a man's life. And he was in love with Jill. He just wasn't sure if Jill was with him anymore and it broke his heart. Perhaps it was possible to fall out of love. But then again, he thought, true love, real love, never died.

And it seemed neither did his hunger. _Wait where's Bryce? Damn him and his unending energy. Can't he give a guy a break? He has to know I'm dying over here!_ He saw Bryce enter the small pizza shop way ahead of him. He was only close enough to see shapes and colors of the people inside, but still tried to sneak a glance at the woman he was about to meet.

If he saw her now, out of public, it might help prepare him for the inevitable babbling that spewed out of his mouth whenever he saw a pretty girl. The least he could do was not look like a bumbling idiot in the face of a beautiful woman. He found that they didn't really find it very endearing when said idiot was twenty-two. It just came off as creepy.

However, he was too far away, and when he heard Bryce call for him to hurry up, he sighed and continued. He'd just have to hope that this new girl wouldn't reject him completely. He wondered if he was so much of a turnoff that he could actually scare her away from Bryce. Oh who was he kidding, Bryce was a great guy, and not even Best Friend and Super Nerd Chuck Bartowski could keep the women away from him.

Damn he'd been in a bad mood lately; normally he wasn't so self-deprecating. Pushing all insecurities aside, he trudged forward to meet the mystery woman.

What he saw when he stepped into the shop rendered him speechless for the second time that day. She wasn't just some pretty girl. There standing by their table was a truly stunning woman. She was beautiful – so, so beautiful. Was it a goddess, an angel? Vicky Vale? So much beauty could not possibly be concentrated to one person. Heavenly, breathtaking, irreplaceable beauty. He had never felt uglier or less worthy to be in someone's presence than he did at that moment. _Where in the world did that wind machine come from? You're staring, man! Why aren't you moving? She's holding her hand out to you! Wipe off the drool, pick up your jaw, find some balls and for the love of God, shake the woman's hand!_

"…to meet you. I'm Sarah." Wow what a smile. Her voice was so soft, so sweet, and so warm. He now felt very, very warm. He just stared at her hand awkwardly, far too embarrassed to make eye contact. He should not be thinking this way, but it was almost as involuntary as breathing. He really had to get a hold of himself. He forced himself out of his surely stupid-looking expression and finally looked up, indulging himself in the wonderful sight again.

"Hi! I'm Chuck." He gave the biggest smile he could muster, finding it helpful in awkward situations. People didn't tend to hate him as much when he smiled, and he was counting on that right now.

It certainly wasn't a fake smile, since he was genuinely excited to meet her. Guys like him usually never got to meet, shake the hand of, or share a meal with a woman of her caliber. He eagerly took her hand. His palms were a little sweaty, but hopefully not enough for her to notice. It may be in his head, but something felt so right about the way her skin felt against his, even if it was from the brief touch of a handshake.

The biggest mistake he ever made was look into her eyes. They were so mesmerizing. Mysterious and passionate and good and maybe a little sad. They were blue. So, so blue. They locked gazes and she was staring right back at him, a question in her eyes. Maybe he had been staring a little too long. _Oh God, she must be so uncomfortable right now._ He couldn't look away.

The strangest thing of it all was that she didn't look away either. She kept his gaze just as intensely, seemingly doing the same thing he was. But then again, she was with Bryce, he was with Jill, he was a nerd, she was a goddess, and as much as he would've liked to think so, she was not interested in him. She couldn't be and he needed to accept that. Nevertheless, he'd like to get to know her better. For Bryce, of course.

"So, you guys ready to order?" They broke eye contact the second they heard Bryce's voice and sat down at the table Sarah stood by earlier. Bryce and Sarah sat together on one side opposite of Chuck, Sarah directly across from him. Both Chuck and Sarah answered in the affirmative, still feeling slightly uncomfortable from their initial encounter.

Bryce just focused back on the menu, seemingly unaware of the moment that had passed between Chuck and Sarah a minute before. Chuck was glad; things could've gotten uncomfortable if he had. Still, Chuck couldn't help but want to smack Bryce upside the head for not pulling out Sarah's chair for her, but he knew it wasn't his place.

Desperate to take his mind off her, he shared his news, "So, Bryce, did I tell you I got a job at the Buy More?"

Bryce just snickered. "Let me guess, as part of the Geek Squad?"

Chuck scoffed, mouth hung open in exaggerated hurt and disgust. "It's nerd, you jerk," he teased. "And you should feel honored to be looking at the newest member of the Nerd Herd. I pulled a lot of strings to get out of stock boy duty with the help of my buddy Morgan." As he spoke of his friend, he looked at Sarah, who couldn't have known who Morgan was.

"Morgan? You still talk to that guy?" Bryce asked.

"How many times do I have to tell you? The guy is my oldest friend. He has never left my side and I plan on returning the favor. Loyalty is something I don't take for granted." He reasoned there were too many crappy people out there to take the good ones for granted. Morgan, Ellie, Bryce, Jill, and even Sarah now would all hold places in his heart, and there was no doubt in his mind that he'd stay fiercely loyal to them. Life was too short to waste on skepticism and bitterness.

Bryce, however, grew quiet. Chuck never meant it as a slight to his friend, but Bryce seemed to be taking his comment rather hard. His eyes stared down at the table, confusion and regret painting his features. The sudden change in mood made the shop grow cold. Chuck, afraid he had somehow insulted his friend, tried to think of a way to forward the conversation. "Besides, I've got to keep him away from Ellie, the guy just doesn't know when to give it up," he said with a chuckle, sending a pleading look towards Sarah.

Bryce came out of his stupor then and cracked a smile. "It's so cool you two are still so close. I'll have to visit the family again soon." He said the right words, but Chuck sensed that Bryce didn't believe them. Maybe because it was the second semester of their senior year, but recently Bryce always seemed like he was saying goodbye. "But uh, this thing at the Buy More, it's good right? Nice back-up job with some extra cash…"

"Yeah, but it's just for breaks and when I have extra time, especially if I don't find a job right after graduation."

"Chuck, you're a smart guy, I know that no matter what, things will turn out for you," Bryce said with far too much sincerity for the previously light conversation. Bryce's intense stare demanded Chuck's attention. The tension between the two felt unnatural. Something was off.

Sarah decided then to speak up, possibly to avoid the dreaded awkward silence, "So, uh…Morgan, I didn't think people named their kids Morgan, or Chuck for that matter."

Chuck grinned, knowing the perfect retort. "Carnival freaks found him in a dumpster, but they raised him as one of their own. As for me, my parents were sadists."

Sarah smiled, genuinely smiled, and he couldn't stop the swell of pride that nerdy and all, at least he could make a pretty girl smile. If he could make her smile like that every day, he would.

Through sips of water, they continued with small talk, Chuck steeling glances at her every few seconds. Not for the first time that night, he found himself admiring her. Natural blonde, creamy skin and athletic build – she was quite a sight. She hadn't said much yet, but she intrigued him like no other. Another place, another time, Chuck would do anything to be with her. But for now, all he could do was be happy for his friend. Bryce was one lucky guy.

* * *

The pizza arrived, the greasy food serving as the icebreaker they needed. Bryce decided to join the living, putting the strange behavior behind him. Sarah sat back and listened as the two discussed homemade video games and space cowboys. The subject matter she could care less about, but it was fun to watch the two interact.

She picked off another olive from the vegetarian pizza, listening half-heartedly to an in-depth discussion about something called a 'teelk', evil 'gold' people, and the pseudo-romance between O'Neill and Carter, whoever they were.

"Oh come on, you gotta love Daniel, he's a freaking genius!" Chuck defended angrily, and what she suspected a bit of irritation.

"He's annoying and pretentious. Who honestly spends their time studying that stuff?" Bryce was really getting into it, eyes hot and fists clenched. She hadn't seen this side of him before.

"People who travel the galaxy fighting Gods, that's who," Chuck said proudly, clearly identifying himself with the character, "and besides, you could be studying things way less important."

"Like video games and old sci-fi TV shows?" Bryce said, knowing that Chuck still studied nerdy pop culture like a second major. He did too, of course, but could hide it much better than Chuck ever could. It was too much a part of him.

"Hey, I happen to think it makes for great conversation at Comic-Con." He didn't seem to be shameful, which was quite endearing. He was who he was, and proud of it. That was more than she could ever say for herself. Being surrounded by hard-asses and business people all day made this normal, lighthearted college life all the more enticing. Chuck and Bryce were having such a good time just talking about nothing at all. Maybe just for one night, she could allow herself to be the typical college girl. She planned to keep quiet all night, but teasing Chuck looked like fun.

"Because that makes it better," she said turning to Chuck, whose eyebrows had risen to the middle of his forehead. She didn't blame him for being surprised; she had barely said a word since introducing herself.

"Ha, since when did you start making jokes?" Bryce asked with condescension in his voice, and she inwardly cringed. He could be such a jerk sometimes.

"I thought it was funny," Chuck said.

"I guess he has a point, I'm really not that funny," she shrugged, accepting that humor was not her forte.

"Is that your big secret, by the way? Because I've been sitting here trying to figure out what's wrong with you…"

"Oh, plenty believe me," she said, a little shocked at how easily he could tell she was hiding something.

"And I was thinking, 'either she's a cannibal or she's really not that funny,' and I was pulling for cannibal, because I never met one before."

"Uh, not a cannibal-"

"Well, some could call her a man-eater," Bryce cut in, grinning at what he thought to be a clever quip. Chuck's eyes widened and mouth dropped, looking back and forth between the seemingly happy couple.

Sarah's shoulders slumped, knowing the full meaning to his words. Maybe Bryce meant it as a joke, but that didn't stop her from feeling like a penny was more valuable than she was. She hated cocky egotistical men, and she hated fawning all over them for the sake of the mission. She really just wanted to be the shy girl, that's maybe not so funny; not this secret seductress used for her looks to lure out horny bad guys. The whole situation made the bile rise in her stomach, draining away all of her confidence. It was one thing to feel beautiful; it was another to feel like a slut.

Seeing her eyes cloud over, Chuck instinctively put a hand on her back, not too low of course, and she immediately felt more relaxed. He gave her a soft smile, apologizing for his friend's rude remark.

"Bryce shut up. If she knows what's good for her, she'll dump your ass right now." Chuck kept it light – much to her relief – by lacing his words with sarcasm. Sarah could feel his hand tense up though, and there was a bit more bite to his words than necessary. She smiled at her social savior as they walked on.

* * *

**Cold Stone Creamery**

**10 March 2003**

**15:03 PST**

So it turned out, Bryce wasn't lying. Chuck was a great, funny, charming guy. And he seemed to bring out a very dorky side of Bryce that she had to admit, Chuck pulled off much better.

Upon finishing the meal, she felt the overwhelming urge to get some rocky road ice cream. Interrupting their now heated debate about the best Captain from something called a Star Trek, she informed them of her preferred post-lunch dessert. Bryce and Chuck happily tagged along as she led the way to her favorite ice cream shop.

Sarah couldn't explain her instinctive desire for rocky road ice cream if she tried. She hadn't had it in such a long time. But something inside her yearned for it, and it scared her how easily she listened. It was just some ice cream after all.

She walked hand-in-hand with Bryce, Chuck trailing behind them. Chuck was not at all what she was expecting. He was kind, goofy, and nerdy in the most adorable way. He made her smile and he made her laugh. His compliments to her were so sincere it made her want to cry. But his absolute honesty had to be the most enticing thing about him. That characteristic was so rare in her life and in life in general, that she had to acknowledge and appreciate it.

Conversation between them happened so naturally, it was as if they had known each other for years. He was just so innocent, so unassuming and so gentle that she really shouldn't have been so shocked at how easy it was to like him.

They walked up to the shop with Chuck in tow, Bryce insisting on paying. She watched silently as the two argued over who had the right to pay.

She looked at the ice cream in the glass display. She was usually a plain chocolate kind of girl – well, at least recently. Rocky road had been with her since she was a kid, but upon growing older her tastes changed to chocolate. It was safe, typical, and still as good as any other flavor. Most people loved chocolate ice cream – it wasn't too plain and always tasted good. She was used to it, and it still contented her to have a scoop every now and again.

Waiting in line to order, Sarah took this time to look at Chuck, really look at him, and she had to smile. Curls bouncing, his messy hair was just so adorable, a far cry from Bryce's smooth and well-kept hair. Chuck was lanky and lean, but she could always appreciate a man taller than her. His shoulders were broad, and although not muscular, he still looked like he kept in decent shape.

Bryce had won the battle, considering Chuck had paid for lunch. She thought it was cute how he still insisted on paying. After they all ordered Bryce went up to the register. Chuck and Sarah locked eyes again, him with a goofy grin on his face. Since the first time she saw that grin, it was an involuntary response to grin back. His smile was infectious, and she found she liked it more and more each time she saw it.

The chocolate definitely looked more appealing. Rocky road wasn't necessarily unappealing – it had its own charm, but looked a bit more lumpy and disproportionate next to the chocolate. It was through no fault of the ice cream; the very nature of rocky road eliminated all possibilities of it looking smooth. It wasn't the predictable choice, and some people just couldn't see past its messy look. But she knew what it tasted like, and the more she ate it, the more appetizing it was. It may be the best-looking ice cream she had ever seen.

"So, Sarah, I feel like I should've seen you around more, what classes are you taking?" He looked right at her, his eyes boring into hers, leaving her certain that he wasn't just starting conversation for an excuse to ogle her. He wanted to know her, cared about what she said, and looked only at her eyes. She found herself getting lost in the warmth and gentleness of his gaze, taken aback by the raw emotion and openness of his features. He was just so different.

There was something about rocky road. It was a mixture of flavors, a combination of salty and sweet, and every bite kept her on her toes. It was really one of the most entertaining things to eat. But in many ways, rocky road was harder to eat too. Not as smooth as chocolate, or as consistent. Maybe that was what made it more engaging. It was sometimes crunchy and sometimes chewy, and at times, the flavor combinations didn't exactly mix well resulting in an awkward taste. But it was still better, in her mind, than just the chocolate.

"Um, nothing much, just some language and art classes. By far the hardest has to be Fleming's class. It's frustrating when majority of his tests don't even involve studying." She realized that she rarely got the chance to complain about teachers or classes with Bryce. It was always the mission, or…others things that their time spent together consisted of. With Chuck, she could just relax and be normal – no mission, no danger, just her and her petty problems with stupid college classes.

"You know, believe it or not, I'm actually acing the guy's class!" Chuck said excitedly. Sarah's not surprised at all though, from what little time she spent with him, she could already tell how intelligent he was.

"Of course you are," she said it matter-of-factly, smiling at his cluelessness to his own aptitude.

"Honestly, the entire last section of the midterm was a complete shot in the dark for me," he said, awed at his fortune in picking the right answers.

Bryce came back then, handing everyone their respective ice cream cups. Sarah eagerly took the cup and dug in, completely forgetting about their conversation and just relishing in the perfect combination of sweet and salty.

"Oh come on Chuck, bragging about your grades again?" Bryce teased, overhearing the last part of their conversation.

"Don't be jealous Bryce, you know you can't beat me at _everything_."

"Oh I know, but I can certainly try."

There were certain elements of chocolate within rocky road. Rocky road was chocolate, with a whole lot extra added in. Both were sweet, both tasted good. But chocolate was one note. One flavor, although satisfying, not nearly as good as rocky road. Rocky road was just better – with layers of flavors, each intriguing and unexplainably tasty – in almost all ways. Still, chocolate would never be a bad choice.

"Hey at least I'm a better singer than you are," Chuck said, with a bit of uncertainty in his tone.

"Like hell! If you ever actually got the courage to sing in front of people, we might find out. I've heard you sing man, and _maybe_ with a little practice you can try and take me on in that old karaoke bar down the street."

Chuck stayed quiet, unable to retort to his friend's sound argument.

It disturbed her how curious she really was to hear his voice, and how eager she was to watch him succeed and come out of his shell. She wouldn't mind seeing Bryce knocked down a peg or two either. But she shouldn't care about his self-esteem needing to be higher, and she shouldn't be wondering what other hidden talents he possessed. This was just another mission with her partner, and this was all part of her job.

She took another bite of her ice cream, starting to feel guilty about how good it tasted. Rocky road wasn't exactly healthy. Neither was the chocolate, but it would certainly be easier to explain to the treadmill. For her own self-discipline, chocolate was easier to rid her system of.

"If I started singing in public, I would be such a laughing stalk that Jill would be sure to dump me," he joked. Not all of it was a joke though, she could tell.

"You never know, I heard a guy who can sing can be quite a hit with the ladies. You might just sweep her off her feet." Bryce led the way, aimlessly walking around campus as he continued, "How are things going by the way? I haven't seen her around lately."

"Um, well, I'm giving her some time, she hasn't been responding to any of my gifts – that's actually part of the reason I'm running out of money. But I've been thinking, I should really just, you know, talk to her, let her know I love her. Or maybe I could take her out to her favorite place and…like do her favorite things. But singing, my friend, could only make me look more pathetic." Chuck's mood had rapidly declined. Upon the mention of the name 'Jill,' his body language had completely changed. His shoulders were slumped, his eyes a bit darker and a bit sadder, and even his curls seem to fall more limply. Her heart broke for him.

"Just wait it out, she'll come around," Bryce soothed, but Sarah could tell Jill's betrayal disturbed him as well.

Sarah had never met the woman, but she wasn't sure she even wanted to. Bryce told her Chuck had a girlfriend, and that they were having some problems. But from what she could tell, Chuck had done nothing wrong. Maybe Jill was just stupid. Who could reject a man like Chuck? He was such a good man, so sweet and passionate and caring and…_Whoa, Walker, watch it. Those were way too many positive adjectives._ Sarah took another spoonful of her rocky road, its sweetness surprising her yet again.

Sometimes rocky road was too good, too rich for her and she needed the simplicity of chocolate no matter how much it paled in comparison. Rocky road was so very good, and yet so very bad for her. She should just go to the gym. Forget all thoughts of all ice cream – rocky road, chocolate, or otherwise – and just focus on her exercise.

They continued walking around campus; Sarah listening intently as Chuck animatedly retold the story about how his sister and her boyfriend were caught in the supply closet on their first day of med school. She thought the boyfriend's name was Devon, but…_wait, what did he just say?_

Sarah interrupted, "So, so wait, you call him Captain Awesome?"

"Yeah, wait until you meet him, everything he does is awesome. Climbing out of mountains, jumping out of planes…flossing." He gave that smile again, and she couldn't help it, she laughed. He was a funny guy.

They walked a little more and it was starting to get late, but he just kept talking and she found herself wanting to listen. He had a different life, a normal one, but she had never been so immersed in a conversation. It was light and fun, and pretty soon, she forgot Bryce was even with them.

Sarah was sure she had never laughed more in her entire life. _Who knew old stories of family could be so entertaining?_ Chuck was quite the klutz as a kid, but it was endearing how easily he shared his embarrassment. It saddened her momentarily when he talked so reverently about his family and friends when the closest thing that she had to a family was a careless father, an abandoned mother, and a CIA recruiter. Still, the way he lit up when he spoke of his family made her wish for that life too, and reminded her of a time when such a life was possible.

The scariest thing about rocky road was how far back it took her – back to a childhood where the soothing taste of the ice cream healed her after a particularly dangerous con. It brought back her innocence in a way that chocolate never could. She didn't know how, but the rocky road ice cream actually made her feel, and she found herself being giddy and happy when she ate it, as ridiculous as that sounded. Chocolate was something that simply satisfied her taste buds when she was in the mood.

The sun was starting to set, and Bryce said goodbye to Sarah with a sweet kiss on the lips, tasting of the chocolate ice cream he had earlier. She couldn't help but wish she had a proper goodbye with Chuck. Like maybe a hug, a kiss on the cheek, or just another handshake. _Wait, why does she want to touch him so much? Geez, it was just a handshake, Walker._ She returned to her dorm with thoughts of Chuck Bartowski in her head.

Brushing her teeth, she knew that the next time she got ice cream it would probably be chocolate. It was simple and all she really needed. She may long for the rocky road; secretly wanting it without even realizing it, but it was just too different. She was a secret agent, one who wasn't even supposed to be indulging herself in such desserts. But if she did – when she did, it might as well be chocolate.

It was unreasonable thinking, but she knew that if she was told never to have chocolate again, she could handle it much better than if she became too attached to rocky road.

But after that first taste, after so many years, she knew she could only resist it for so long. Something about rocky road kept pulling at her, enticing her to have another taste. She realized that it was her new favorite flavor.

* * *

**Gamma Delta Phi House: Bryce and Chuck's room**

**10 March 2003**

**20:12 PST**

Bryce and Chuck returned to their room, Chuck finally getting to study for that test he was so worried about. Somewhat studying – he was still thinking about the blonde beauty, Sarah. He liked her a lot, but he hoped not too much. She was with Bryce after all.

Upon first setting eyes on her, he saw her like an extraterrestrial being – too perfect to come from Earth. She was his Halley's Comet, a once in a lifetime type of thing. One could only be so lucky as to witness such an enigma, and she absolutely enraptured him. It was wrong to be thinking of her so profoundly so soon, but he couldn't help but think that meeting her could change his life.

His initial reaction to her was severe – he felt an instant connection, a strong attraction to her like a magnet, opposite to her yet fitting her perfectly. This girl was different, he knew almost immediately. It had no explanation; he himself had absolutely no idea why he had come to that conclusion so quickly. It was more than her appearance though. They had only talked briefly, but her very presence changed his world completely. Everything about her intrigued him, the blonde hair – he usually went for brunettes – the toothy smile, the shy yet confident personality.

He looked over to his friend, sitting at his own desk, texting his girlfriend – maybe even about him. That thought excited and terrified him at the same time. Turning back to his work, he thought of how cool it would be to hang out with Sarah. Tonight, he reflected, could very well have been the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Little did he know, Bryce was in inner turmoil, just agreeing to do something that would change Chuck Bartowski's life forever. The burn phone he held in his hand just revealed a text message from the mysterious Orion explaining the urgency of what Bryce must do.

So, it was decided. Soon enough, Chuck's life was about to change, in a way that Bryce hoped will be for the better. Chuck may not see it that way, but Chuck needed to be protected. This was the best way, the only way to do so. He was still, in a way, ruining his friend's life too. It was painful to think about what it would do to Chuck. He sighed.

Still to come was the worst part, and Bryce knew it.

* * *

A/N 2: Any and all reviews and criticisms are welcomed and appreciated. If all goes well, I will be updating every Monday for old time's sake. Also, I don't have a beta, so anyone who's up for it let me know, I would be forever grateful.


	2. Keep Yourself Warm

A/N: This is earlier than I was planning, but it is Zachary Levi's birthday, so I had to do something special. The chapter titles are songs used on the show, but let me be clear: this is not a songfic. It's just a clever way to help you get a glimpse as to what the chapter may be about. Just a hint, pay attention to the time headings, not everything happens chronologically within this chapter. Also, I played a little fast and loose with some of the details that weren't completely clear in canon, so keep that in mind.

Big thanks go to uplink2 for looking at the chapter and giving me great advice; without him, I don't know what I would've done with that first draft. Lastly, thank you to all who have reviewed, followed or favorited this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Chuck, NBC and WB do. "A Comet Appears" belongs to The Shins and "Keep Yourself Warm" belongs to Frightened Rabbit. I'm not making any money off this, so please don't sue.

* * *

**Stanford University**

**18 March 2003**

**21:42 PST**

_Right foot, left foot. Pump your arms, breath evenly. Just two more miles._

Sarah jogged around campus, trying to clear her head yet again. She had been an emotional roller coaster lately, and she wasn't used to it. She still felt badly about pigging out on rocky road ice cream every day for nearly a week. Her classes were getting too hard, and she was constantly confused. She hated feeling confused. So she ran.

The artificial lighting from the street lamps created a shadow to her left, mocking her movements. Ponytail swinging, the shadow kept perfect form. But the silhouette hid her ever present frustration; it wasn't enough, she could do better. Just a little more.

Her breathing was labor some, and she was starting to lean forward to keep up her pace. She knew she was getting tired, but she needed more time to keep her mind blank, to just breathe and move her legs and arms. Running was simple, and that was a treasure in her world of complications.

She loved running in the dark. Almost nobody was out; they were all either partying or studying. No one to gawk at her in spandex and a sports bra – really, how else was she supposed to exercise? – and no sun to beat down on her sweat covered skin. This was the only time of day she truly felt at peace.

Her thoughts drifted back to her day with Bryce. He was quiet. His answers were shorter, and conversation was a little too forced. He seemed just as distracted as she was. She reckoned not for the same reason, but she considered it. Whenever they even approached the subject of friends at all, he deflected.

Then she realized she was the one who kept bringing it up. Asking about if he wanted her to hang out with them, if any could help her study, how they were doing. She really only cared about one. She had no idea why though. He was the most ordinary person one could think of, and still, he fascinated her. Maybe what made him so fascinating was that he wasn't fascinating at all.

She had completely lost control of her breathing, but mostly she'd lost her motivation to keep running. Skin glistening, chest heaving, and hair messy, she found a bench and plopped on to it, not bothering with a cool down. She had no idea how far she ran, she just knew that she had to stop, finally listening to her body. She would be sore from not stretching properly, but she was just so tired. Tired of it all.

These were trying times; she knew she'd get over it eventually, but being at Stanford around all of these _normal _people did something to her. Exercising, going to the shooting range, training with Bryce, preparing for missions, it all used to be so exciting for her. It still was, but things were starting to lose their appeal. She felt off, as if something outside of her control was making her feel this way, that there was nothing she could do to stop her unease. In all her life, she had never felt less in control of herself.

She was probably in the safest place she could be at the moment, but she had never felt more exposed. Sure, sitting alone at night on a college campus wasn't necessarily safe, but she could handle herself. She was in no danger at Stanford – it was in the country, and to her knowledge, no enemy agents in sight. All she really had to do was act normal and finish school. She sort of had a cover with Bryce – girlfriend may be a bit of a stretch, but it was close enough. She was basically herself, surrounded by normal people. It was terrifying.

She had it all planned out: graduate college, become top government agent, and then…well maybe she didn't have it _all _planned out. But here, staring out at the dark blue sky, she found herself contemplating that last step. Maybe normal wouldn't be so bad.

Still, it wasn't completely her choice. She still had her reasons – very good reasons, she might add – for continuing her career. She definitely didn't doubt anything seriously, but it got her thinking.

Little time had passed, but she found herself to be ten times more confused than she was five minutes ago. She hated thinking this much. She got herself out of her head, allowing her senses to take over. She closed her eyes, calmed herself, and took a deep breath.

It was times like these that she was glad she never looked into music. It wasted time, and it was distracting. She especially appreciated the silence when running, enjoying the sound of her heart beating and her feet pounding. Mostly though, the lack of music allowed her to listen for anyone trying to sneak up on her, like now.

She heard the light tapping of footsteps and the soft hum of a baritone male voice coming from the distance.

"Some uber-man I'd make I'm, barely a vapor…"

It was sweet and smooth, and to her surprise, calmed her still ragged breathing. Her heartbeat however, kicked up a few notches.

She tensed; reasoning that only an enemy or a drunken idiot would dare come up to her in the middle of the night. He came closer and stopped – and her worst fears were realized. Whoever this was had come to see her.

She looked up to see none other than the man who had been occupying her thoughts. Sporting flattering jeans and a plain t-shirt, he smelled fresh and clean, a welcomed reprieve from her own musky odor. He looked worried, tired, and a bit more relaxed than she was used to seeing him. She was confused, considering how he spent his day. He should've been happy.

* * *

**Stanford University**

**18 March 2003**

**17:23 PST**

Chuck just finished class when he caught the back of Jill's head a few feet ahead of him. He usually picked the front row, just because it helped him focus, so he almost always the last person to leave the lecture hall. Jogging a little to catch up to her, he placed a hand on her shoulder to let her know he was there. He thought it was gentle enough, but he was met with a sharp turn of her head along with her whole body tensing.

She glared at him a second, almost as if she was mad at him for acknowledging her, but eventually relaxed. "Oh, Chuck, I didn't see you there."

"Hey Jill, I haven't really seen you around lately, do you want to, maybe, have a late lunch with me…" he looked at his watch and pouted, "I mean, that is if you, you know, haven't eaten yet." He felt ridiculous, asking his own girlfriend to lunch. Nevertheless, it was like he was at the top of that Ferris wheel again, totally unsure if she even liked him enough to spend the extra time with him.

They both stopped in the middle of the aisle as other students walked passed them. They couldn't have been standing there for more than thirty seconds. It felt like the longest, most awkward thirty seconds of Chuck's life.

She just stared at him for a moment, as if calculating what to do next. He'd seen that expression before – brows furrowed and lips pouted – it was as if she was studying for a test, or solving a problem. Was he the problem?

She looked at her friend for confirmation, but for what, he wasn't sure. The friend nodded, which Jill mirrored as she turned to him. She then gave him a toothy smile, perhaps not the same relaxed one he was used to, but he'd overlook that for now. He sighed in relief, his previous expression of nervousness and worry replaced by a bright smile. He could finally spend some time with her; maybe he'd even get to plead his case.

He reached for her hand as they made their way to what Chuck thought was Jill's favorite lunch place. Sure his hands were a little sweaty, but the warmth of just her fingers was something he had been craving since – well, since about a week ago. But that was something different altogether. This was Jill – pretty, smart Jill. Their hands molded together in practiced ease, the same old thing they'd been doing for years. It wasn't as comfortable as he remembered, but if he reconnected with her, they could just pick up where they'd left off.

However, as he looked at her when they came in, her expression remained tense and stoic. He didn't know how he did it, but he probably screwed up already. He didn't think he'd forced this 'linner' date on her when he asked. He was sure he must've looked desperate, because he was, but she had her choice. She had said yes, so he'd hoped she would be as excited as he was.

He discretely let go of her hand, thinking he could be smothering her. It was against his better judgment not to pick at what was bothering her, but this was a sensitive situation. One wrong move and they could be broken up for good. So, he kept a respectable distance as they waited to be seated. He would go at her pace, no matter what. Whatever she wanted, he would give. He would not give this up without a fight.

He kept his hands behind his back, looking down at his toes. Heavy silence lay between, a wall that had never been there before keeping them separate. She looked to be a soldier - body tense, eyes looking straight ahead, hands at her sides. Even as the host directed them to a small table in the corner, she still looked to be marching, not bothering with a smile or a thank you to the employee as he walked away.

Chuck knew he had to turn this around. She could barely look him in the eye, but he was dying for some kind of connection. "So how have classes been going?" Chuck asked as they sat down.

"Good, I'm glad I made chemistry my major, I already have a job lined up for graduation," she said, fake smile plastered on her face. There was nothing genuine about it; he hadn't said anything funny or cute. She had just looked down at the menu a moment before, pausing for a second, as if preparing herself. As soon as she lifted her head, extremely-happy-for-no-good-reason Jill replaced stone-faced Jill. It was eerie.

He got scared for a moment, just by the sheer quickness of it all. She was a completely different person within a blink of an eye. It confused him, but he didn't want to overanalyze anything, at least not today. _Maybe she finally decided to give me a chance. _She started to eye the food around them._ Heck, maybe she was just hungry. _

"That's great! So, uh, is that why I haven't seen you around lately?" She gazed at him, obviously not opting to give him an immediate response.

However, he did start to feel her foot move up and down his leg, making him feel uneasy. Ordinarily, it would have been a welcomed gesture, but now it just seemed so out of place, almost forced. He tried to move him leg away, but she kept on, moving a little faster and more forcefully this time. He smiled uncomfortably and conspicuously looked around the restaurant as he took a sip from his water. He was so very uncomfortable. This was just strange, and not at all what he was expecting. She was so hot and cold, it was hard to keep up. But he figured he would take hot when he could get it. Who was he to reject her now?

She just kept smiling and looking at him as he squirmed. "Um sure, I guess," she said as she tucked her brunette hair behind her ear, smile still dazzling.

She was teasing him, taunting him, distracting him, and she knew it. This was so not okay. His jaw tightened, and his fists clenched. He hated many things in this world: useless killing, new coke, Gail Berman, her fake smile, but most of all, he despised lying. He wasn't about to let her get away with it. It was almost even more insulting that she wasn't even trying to lie well, just giving a crap answer assuming he would be too preoccupied to notice. Normally, it would've worked. But this was important to him, and he just couldn't accept that answer.

"Well if it's not that, then what is it?" His voice dropped an octave, anger seeping through his tone. He was starting to get impatient, and he of all people deserved an honest answer from her. He needed her to take him seriously, so he nudged her foot away with his knee. He was tired of playing games.

Her eyes widened as her smile fell, surprised by his tenor. Her face was stone, cold Jill making its appearance once again. "I don't even know what you're talking about."

And there it was. It was a lie, and they both knew it. She was counting on him to be a nice person about it and let it go, but his frustration level was about at its limit.

He had to get this off his chest. They used to spend so much time together, even before they were dating. Videos games, studying, whatever. Now, she was never around, and he had a good idea of why. He sincerely hoped he didn't have to spell it out for her, but he was short of blowing steam from his ears.

"Jill, if it's not that, then what has been taking up your time lately?" There, he said it. The implication was there, and maybe, just maybe, she'd see how much she'd hurt him.

"What are you saying?" Oh, God, not the puppy-dog face. She finally opted to make eye contact, but only to fix him with the most pitiful look he'd ever seen. Her eyes were wide and pleading, maybe even glimmering from unshed tears. She looked so innocent, so cute, he almost completely forgot about what he was saying before.

Instinctively he moved back in his seat. If he was going to get the courage to say what he wanted to, he couldn't keep looking at her pathetic expression. He took his hands off the table and set them on his lap, rubbing his thighs and licking his lips. "It's just, Jill, you know I appreciate our time together, and I haven't really been able to see you…" he said, his voice feeble.

He moved his hands back onto the table, fidgeting a little in anticipation to her response.

"Why don't we hang out in your room for a little bit, I know how you get when you're lonely," she said seductively. And just like that, they were playing footsie again. It was back to square one with her, and he couldn't shake the feeling that she was manipulating him. Nevertheless, he still needed to be close to her, and show her that it was good to be close to him too.

If he were to be honest with himself, he was a little more than tempted. He was a man, in love with a girl, desperate to connect with her. He was also more than willing to take his time, without rushing into things. That wasn't why he wanted to spend time with her, and he hoped she knew that.

"Really, Jill? We haven't really been intimate in a long time…"

She was biting her lower lip, her hand on top of his, fingers tracing random patterns on the back of his hand. It kind of tickled, but mostly just annoyed him. "Come on, Chuck. I really just want to be with you again."

He was hesitant to respond at first, pulling his hand back and out of her reach. For a second, he just stared at her, contemplating her words. He felt a little dirty, like they were skipping a few steps. They should talk, reconnect, and be honest with each other. She hadn't answered his questions, and the uncertainty still lived within him. But for the first time that night, she actually looked vulnerable, almost truthful. She wanted him after all. After this disaster of a date, it was the best news he had heard all day.

He wasn't buying it quite yet though. She probably figured he'd jump at the chance, but he was a gentleman. He had to clear the air a bit first. "I just I hope I'm satisfying you…I mean there are a lot of guys around," he paused for a moment, his eyes looking deep into hers, pleading with her, "but I love you. I thought we were exclusive…I guess we never really established that and I, God, I really couldn't handle it you were with someone els–"

He was interrupted by her lips crashing into his, forcefully shutting him up. She gripped the collar of his shirt, holding him close to her across the table.

There was nothing sweet or intimate about the kiss. It felt calculated and practiced, free of any feeling or love. Still, she was finally showing some affection, and he missed her too much to scrutinize the gesture. He would take that as her apology.

After she released him, they both sat back and reached for their waters. It was unexpected, but not necessarily unwelcome. He couldn't help but look at her a little dumbfounded, clearly confused by her suddenness.

She just smirked. "After lunch," she assured him.

They both inhaled their lunch as quickly as possible, Chuck forgetting about the conversation temporarily.

* * *

**Reed's Indoor Range**

**18 March 2003**

**18:29 PST**

Sarah hadn't thought it had been that long since she got some practice in. She and Bryce had only been out of the field for a week, but things felt off. Just a little glimpse into normal life and already she was getting distracted. Stupid classes and stupid roommates and stupid nerds with cute curly hair.

Oh God, this was so not good. All she'd been trying to do all afternoon was keep her head on straight. All she did was lose focus. It cannot be this hard. Set stance, set grip, load, rack, aim, pull the trigger.

Wow, that one went way left. That hadn't happened to her in years. _Damn it, I'm never going survive like this._

After she finished the magazine, only about half ended up being kill shots. Bryce came up from behind her and brought the target forward, keeping silent. Sighing, he turned to her, disappointed. "What was that?"

"I'm sorry, I guess I lost focus," Sarah said. She removed her eye and ear protection.

"Well, don't let it happen again. In the field this," he held up the polka dotted target and pointed to it, "can't happen."

"I know, I'm working on it. I guess I'm just better with knives." Sarah almost looked like a hurt puppy, ashamed at her horrible handiwork. She was supposed to be the CIA's top assassin, but she was shooting like a drunken redneck looking to scare some squirrels.

He crumpled up the target with a bit more force than necessary and threw it away. "You better get it together; we have a mission coming up."

They packed up the various handguns and rifles, Bryce tucking his Glock in the small of his back while Sarah did the same with her Smith and Wesson.

"Speaking of, we should probably have a plan…"

"Yeah I know. Let's get out of here, we can go back to my room to work it out."

"In the frat house? Couldn't someone overhear?" she asked as she and Bryce headed out of the indoor shooting range.

"Don't worry, I constantly sweep for bugs. Besides no one's going to think to bother me if you're there."

They made their way to his car and sat inside. She fidgeted a little, unsure of why she was so nervous to go back to his room. Maybe it was because of what all his friends would think they were doing, or maybe she didn't like that someone could eavesdrop. Anyone could come in, especially his roommate.

"What about Chuck?"

"Don't worry about him, he said he would be taking Jill out to a late lunch. With the way he talks, he won't be back for a while." She simply nodded in response as they made their way back.

Upon arriving at the frat house, a barrage of hi-fives and creepy smiles met them as they moved towards his room. She hated feeling like Bryce's conquest, but she supposed he hadn't had a steady girl in a while, if ever. Somehow, that thought did little to comfort her.

Now in front of the door, Bryce stopped short, with a little smirk on his face.

"Good for you, Chuck," he whispered to himself, shaking his head a little.

"What is it?"

"Come on, you know, like a sock on the doorknob…" He turned toward her, pointing to the offending article sitting on the doorknob.

She scowled, that had to be the strangest habit she had ever come across. And she thought she was kind of messy. "Ew, why would you do that?"

He looked at incredulously and sighed. "Well, it looks like Chuck's lunch date ended a little early, so maybe we could move to your room?"

_Ended early? But if he's in there why can't we just go in…Oh. Ohhh. So that's why her roommate got so pissed that one time…_Sarah just stared at the room wide-eyed, only just realizing what was happening inside. She turned away and shifted her feet awkwardly.

"Oh, um, okay…" She didn't really know what to say. She hated how uncomfortable she was with Chuck being with his girlfriend. Them being together, in this sense, never really crossed her mind before when they talked about her. He was a great guy, he had every right to be with Jill. So why was she feeling so…sad? Angry? It couldn't be jealousy. No, maybe she was just feeling…prudish. Yes, that was why she was uncomfortable.

Bryce and Sarah head off to her room, Sarah even more confused by her reaction than before.

* * *

**Gamma Delta Phi House: Chuck's Room**

**18 March 2003**

**21:26 PST**

It had been a while for them – well, at least for a couple of college kids in a committed relationship.

He wanted it to be special, for her to remember how much he cared for her, and above all else, he wanted to feel the intimacy, the closeness, and the connection that he had been craving for so long with her.

It was different than he remembered. She seemed to have wanted it just as much as he had, maybe more. She just felt needier for some reason, like it was her only chance to be with him. In the afterglow, she hung on to him for dear life, desperation present amongst the satisfaction. He thought what he felt was passion, but maybe it was just pent-up tension from never saying what they needed to say to each other.

The afternoon seemed to have said everything and nothing at all. The experience did nothing to ease his anxiety. It felt like an act, a forced encounter that held no deeper meaning. And that just felt wrong to him. They were supposed to be in love. Maybe she didn't think of him the way that he had thought of her. Maybe she just needed a good friend that wouldn't betray her afterwards. _Maybe, she's just stringing me along._

The thought made him cringe. He wanted desperately to just talk to someone, anyone, about her. He couldn't talk to any of his guy friends, they would either call him a pussy for complaining, or whipped for letting her take him for a ride. Okay, bad analogy.

What he really needed was a female friend, but they all knew and loved Jill. Maybe Sarah? _She did seem pretty cool, I could just send her a text, once I get over the nerves. Right, those nerves I shouldn't be feeling around my friend's girlfriend._

He just needed to clear his head, but Jill was still on top of him, out cold. He used to love being so close to her, but now she felt like extra weight.

Was she really just using him? It didn't feel like a relationship anymore. It just felt like she was keeping him satisfied while keeping herself at a distance. He remembered seeing Bryce and Sarah together, how she smiled and seemed to actually enjoy herself. That made his mind up. Sarah and Bryce, they were a real couple. He and Jill weren't a couple anymore, not really. She jumped ship a while ago, and he didn't know why. He never, ever, thought she could do this to him.

He rolled her off him, but she didn't make that cute whimper sound she usually did when she lost his warmth; she just turned over and continued sleeping, probably exhausted from the day's activities – he was pretty worn himself.

A long walk at night would be good for him. Some alone time around campus, only to be interrupted by jovial or sick partiers – he really hoped he wouldn't encounter the latter.

Taking a quick shower and dressing in his typical jeans and Stanford t-shirt, he headed out the door. Seeing that Jill was not very presentable in case Bryce came in, he tucked her in, and left a t-shirt and some boxers by the bed. He removed his sock from the doorknob and set it down parallel to the door – the code that he and Bryce had established to warn Bryce of Jill being there whenever she decided to stay the night.

With everything in place, he set off, iPod in hand.

* * *

**Stanford University**

**18 March 2003**

**21:42 PST**

Sarah sat on the bench, looking up at Chuck, who was now putting his headphones and iPod away. "Hey," Chuck started awkwardly, shoving his hands in his pockets.

She gave him a smile and scooted over a bit to allow him to sit beside her. "Hey."

Like always, he returned the smile. "So, what are you doing out here all alone? It can't be very safe," he said as he sat down beside her, the light illuminating his face in a strangely attractive way.

She smirked in response to his accusation. With the training she had, the worst thing she had to worry about was getting a cold. "You know, I think I'll be okay."

He nodded and turned so that his body was facing her, their legs nearly touching. His proximity warmed her from the slight chill in the air.

He rested his elbows on his knees and covered his face with his hands. There was a pause, and it looked like he was gathering up the courage to say something to her.

He sighed, nervous energy pouring out of him. "I just…I really need to talk to someone right now and I…I feel like…like everything is just not right…and you seem like someone I could talk to and…I can't really talk to anyone else about this."

She was right, to take that much time to say a simple sentence meant that he was very nervous. He lifted his head, looking right at her, eyes pleading with her to understand.

It would be easy to shrug him off, but she was supposed to be the loving, doting girlfriend, and the guy had enough bitchy women in his life. He looked at her helplessly, and all she wanted to do was hug him. If he needed a friend right now, the least she could do was let him vent.

"Chuck, it's okay, talk to me," she said, laying her right hand on top of his left, resting on his knee.

He seemed soothed by the gesture, and relaxed a little before he spoke.

"It's Jill," she deflated, jaw tightening, "sometimes she just seems so distant. I'm trying so hard, and she doesn't seem to care." Stupid girlfriend. She removed her hand from his, clenching it into a tight fist.

She wasn't shocked that Stupid-Girlfriend was causing problems again; however, she was surprised that he even thought to come to her. He needed help, from her. Not with a terrorist attack or a suspicious enemy agent, no, he needed her advice on a relationship. That almost made her want to laugh. Him, taking relationship advice from _her_? Man, he was in real trouble.

She herself couldn't really understand the situation. She was certain she had seen the two together, in his room, only a little bit before. For most couples, that was a very good sign.

"You guys seemed pretty happy a few hours ago." She hoped that her disgust didn't creep into her voice, although she was confident that to anyone else, she looked unaffected by the thought of Chuck and Jill.

He immediately blushed and looked away. Maybe that wasn't the right thing to say when he clearly needed comforting. Her expression softened, realizing he was probably a bit shyer about this than she and Bryce were. She had to admit she wasn't entirely comfortable either, but she figured for an entirely different reason.

"Oh wow, I'm…I'm really sorry about that, I didn't realize you were trying to get into the room…" He was drowning, completely immersed in the social death that was being caught in the act. If she wasn't so put off, she would've found his embarrassment to be quite entertaining, considering most college boys would be proud.

"It's okay, Chuck…I guess I'm just confused."

He was still embarrassed, but she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do about that. She wanted to reach her hand out again, but decided against it. The best she could hope for was hope that he would look at her and realize that she wasn't judging him, that she was there to help. For now, she just waited him out, allowing him to speak at his own pace.

"But that's exactly it, I am too. Things were different… less intimate…I don't even know who she is anymore." He was still blushing, looking down at his hands.

Her heart broke for him. "I'm sorry, but I really can't help you," she said, real concern in her voice.

"Why not?" He looked surprised, and her heart melted a little thinking that he trusted her so completely. She wanted to help him, if only she had the skills to.

She shifted in her seat, readjusting so that her back was resting on the bench, body pointed away from him.

"I'm just not so good at relationships…" It was her turn to look a little embarrassed – she wasn't supposed to admit that. She was supposed to be the loving girlfriend of his friend Bryce, not spilling her own insecurities to this poor guy. But he had been so open with her; it was the easiest thing in the world to return the favor.

She was sure that her little confession was a mistake – it wouldn't do well for her if Chuck started doubting her relationship with Bryce. But he just looked at her, begging for her attention, which she willingly gave him. "Well, I guess that makes two of us," he said, giving her a shy smile.

There was a beat of easy silence as they just looked at each other. Talking with him, it wasn't so bad. They could be friends, maybe. And if that was the case, then she had better start paying her dues. "You know, from what I've seen, maybe it's not you, per se."

He sighed and turned away, looking at nothing in particular. "I wish I could believe that, but as far as I can tell, she might be cheating on me," he said dejectedly.

She was stunned that he wasn't angrier; if anything, he seemed to be disappointed in himself. This man was unbelievable, she thought. She stared right at him, but he was too lost in thought to bother making eye contact with her. "And you think that's your fault?"

He kept his face down, shaking his head a little. "I don't...maybe I'm not enough for her…or she wants to move on and I'm holding her back…"

_Not enough?_She'd had enough of this. "Chuck, this isn't your fault," she said with such certainty that he couldn't possibly argue.

"Then what do I do now? I love her," she cringed at that, "I couldn't bear to break up with her if we still had a chance." He finally met her gaze and she saw that his face showed no sign of doubt, only expressing such honesty and determination that she was left with only one response.

"I know you wouldn't," she mumbled. For the briefest of moments, she just closed her eyes and breathed out. _They don't come like this anymore._

It was quiet again, their mutual understanding of each other leaving little left to be said. But Chuck being Chuck, wouldn't let the entire conversation revolve around him. He looked at her with hopeful eyes. "Thanks. So uh…how are things with Bryce?"

They were as they always were, but that relationship was so complicated, it even confused her. Still, it would've done Chuck some good to have a little faith in love. She had to give him some hope.

"Fine." She tried to sound as happy and sincere as she could, but she wasn't that sappy in the first place. One-word answers had always been enough for her, so hopefully he would accept it and move on.

For a second, she was afraid he had caught on to her hesitation when he looked a little confused. However, a second later, he responded with a bright, beaming smile, happiness seeping through his features. "That's great! Maybe we could go on a double date or something?"

It was an interesting idea. On the one hand, the thought of seeing Chuck and Jill together in real life sickened her. On the other, she was curious to meet this Jill girl. Who knows, Jill could accidentally trip and have her face shoved into the dirt…anything could happen. "Maybe."

"All right, well, I was going to walk around for a bit…Wanna join me?" His question was filled with so much eagerness it was hard not to notice how cute he was. But she was tired, sweaty, and cold. She just needed to take a shower and go to bed.

She reluctantly stood to leave, feeling chilly once again. She hated herself for doing it, he might still need her, but she needed to keep some distance. "Um…I think I'm just going to head back to my dorm."

He stood up as well. "Right, yes of course, I should've realized…you're all dressed for running and whatnot…" he trailed off, momentarily distracted by her attire, or lack thereof. His eyes scanned her body, and he blushed yet again. It was cute how flustered he got, and he didn't stare for too long, so she wasn't as insulted as she usually would be. He cleared his throat and looked away. "So, uh, why are you dressed like that anyways?"

She grinned, finding his embarrassment absolutely adorable. "I think you just answered that, Chuck."

He let out a nervous chuckle. "Well yeah, but I mean why…now?"

He ventured to look at her again, careful to keep his eyes on hers.

"I like the dark," she simply replied.

"You know that's funny, me too. It helps you think." He smiled at their newfound connection.

She returned the smile and ran her fingers through her hair. "Exactly."

He shifted side to side a little, before putting his hands in his pockets once again. "Well, um, anyways, I guess I'll see you around then?"

She certainly hoped so.

"Sure Chuck, I'll see you around." With that, Chuck continued past her, and they walked away in opposite directions.

She smiled despite herself, happy that she could help her new friend.

* * *

**Stanford University**

**19 March 2003**

**13:18 PST**

Jill waited patiently by the chemistry lab to meet with her new contact. He had better not be late or she will be really, really pissed. She already gave enough to this God forsaken organization, the least they could was allow her to have some kind of a social life.

It wasn't right what was happening to her, and to all those around her. She shouldn't have to break Chuck's heart, and she shouldn't have to do all of these horrible things. But every time she protested, they came back with stupid patriotic propaganda that she only realized was a complete load after the fact.

They thought they were so clever. They were.

She was hooked, and she couldn't find a way out. She'd like to think she was a good person, but the more she associated herself with these people, the less appealing 'good' sounded. Her world was grey, and the line between right and wrong didn't really exist for her anymore. All clandestine organizations – government or otherwise – were shady. Shoot him, steal that, it was all the same.

Fulcrum just seemed more logical to her. If it were Fulcrum against the CIA, Fulcrum would be the more efficient. It was smaller, more talented, and able to filter out the analysts and leave the clandestine operatives to do the real work.

It all seemed brilliant and even justified until she realized how big it actually was. Her knowledge was limited, but after a while, she picked up on a lot of things.

Apparently, it wasn't just Fulcrum. They were part of another group, the Rock or something. She had also heard of a Russian branch, and that their leader was a complete psychopath.

There was someone else too, who was like the puppet master, controlling it all but never being seen. Almost nobody knew his name, but he had been alluded to enough for her to catch on. Rumor had it that he was crazy (they all were) and hell-bent on some project he was meant to have, but was apparently dismissed for a more promising recruit.

That was why she was here now. This Russian spy was supposed to be meeting her here to investigate on chatter of some genius boy who could handle said project – of course, she was never told what it was. She was instructed to take the operative, introduce him to her friends, and get him involved in the community so he could blend in more easily. She was also told to welcome him outside of the chemistry lab. If he'd only show up.

Just as the thought echoed through her head, Agent Victor Krum walked through the door, big and bulky and tall, just like she had expected. These agents could be so predictable sometimes. He had a square head with short dusty blonde hair and a large nose. He looked mean, like they all did, with a snarl and haughty look etched in his features. He commanded attention when he walked into the room, which when she really thought about it, defeated the purpose of being a spy. Giant muscular men definitely didn't just go walking around Stanford University. This was going to take some work.

No smiles were exchanged and the bare minimum was said as they walked out of the chemistry building.

She needed to introduce him to some people, so she decided to start simple. She set up a little study date with her, the agent, Chuck and Bryce. They were fairly social, so if she asked, they could show him around. Problem solved.

She wanted to believe that she made up with Chuck, but when she awoke to an empty bed, she had a feeling nothing real was resolved. She felt horrible about it, shutting him up by giving him sex, but she couldn't give him any answers and she wasn't quite ready to give him up.

She liked him, maybe even loved him, but Fulcrum was too big to fight. If they said he had to go, she was going to follow. Mercifully, they gave her until graduation to end things. She was excited to go out into the world as a real agent, but she hated that she had to break his heart to be respected. Chuck was such a sweet guy, but she would be the first to admit, her career came first.

The worst part of this whole thing was exactly that – giving up her normal life. No more college friends or normal career options, and no more boyfriends. But Chuck was a smart, cute, and charming guy, she was sure he'd move on soon enough.

Unfortunately, though, one of the best things about him was his faithfulness, which meant that to truly cut ties with him, she couldn't just break his heart; she had to destroy it. She hoped that ignoring him after a while would to it, but the nerd was persistent, and kept sending her sweet and surprisingly expensive gifts. If she was any other girl, her heart would melt and she would be running back into his safe, loving arms. But she was a spy now, and that meant her heart was stone, and she would be running into the arms of a mark.

She has no idea why that thought had seemed more desirable. Oh, right, America, of course. Fulcrum will one day help America. She hoped.

* * *

**Stanford University**

**19 March 2003**

**15:07 PST**

Sarah never realized it before, but Chuck was in her Steganography class. Professor Fleming was talking about encoded images and subliminal…something. She wasn't really paying attention. Her eyes were trained on him.

He was sporting a striped polo shirt, his head is down, doodling something in his notebook – nothing out of the ordinary. Normally she could barely keep her eyes open in this class, but she couldn't help constantly stealing glances from his direction. She should be oohing and awing like the rest of the class, and maybe she would have if she didn't find something else more interesting.

The agency wanted her to take this class, for what she didn't know – she was a language major. This stuff, although marginally interesting, had nothing to do with what her future career held.

Plus, the tests were impossible. How in the world he could be acing this class while, apparently, an entire section of the final test would be on subliminal image recognition, was beyond her. She only just passed the midterm. To be able to look at a picture and see what you were literally not supposed to see, meant that you had to be really, really smart. And he had those skills. It was really quite incredible.

Maybe he could help her figure this stupid stuff out after all. If she was supposed to pass this class, she damn well better put forth her best effort. If that meant spending a little extra time with Chuck, then so be it. It would be worth the sacrifice.

Fleming dismissed the class and the students began to shuffle and make their way towards the exit. With a deep breath, she approached Chuck, who still had his head down. "Hey, Chuck."

She smiled at him as soon as he lifted his head, realizing he was being addressed.

"Hey…Sarah! How can I help you?" He nearly dropped the mountain of books in his hands upon seeing her.

She turned to walk with him towards the door. "Yeah, um, I was just wondering, since you were doing so well in this class and I'm…not, could we maybe get together? I could really use the help."

He stopped for a second, mouth open and eyes staring disbelievingly back at her. He was momentarily frozen before he finally spoke up, snapping out of his trance.

"Huh? Oh sure, yeah sure, of course, I would love to help you." He gave her a big, bright smile.

"Great, when are you free?"

They stopped outside of the building to face each other. "Well, Jill was gonna have a study session around three with me and Bryce to help out a new classmate. So maybe, if you're free, we could meet like an hour before hand?"

She didn't have to think about it for long. "Okay. So I'll see you tomorrow around two?"

"Yeah, okay. Bye Sarah." He was struggling under the load of books he was carrying in his arms, slightly out of breath. She didn't blame him for not wanting to stand around for too long.

"Bye Chuck." He hurried away, head buried in his books once again. She happily skipped off, excited about her study date – study _meeting_ – with Chuck. At least she'd finally get some work done in this hellish week.

* * *

**Two Pines Cabin aka Orion's Cabin**

**19 March 2003**

**22:38 PST**

Stephen Bartowski was not an unreasonable man.

He loved his son. More than anything though, he needed to protect his son. This was in no way, shape, or form meant to destroy his life – he just had to let him be free.

Sighing, he cracked his neck and knuckles before bowing his head down again, concentrating on the advanced mechanics involved. It was so very close – maybe nine months, a year at most – and it would be ready.

His fear though, was that they wouldn't find someone who could handle it. Or worse, download it into some poor sap bound to go completely mad, or even lose their memories. That would just be plain sad.

The Intersect, as he and the government liked to call it, was supposed to be used as a teaching tool, at least at first. The recipient would learn everything they needed to about people, places, and things. All they would need to do is just see, hear, or think of something, anything, and the encoding in the images they saw would allow them to recall any information related to the subject. It was his masterpiece.

He thought he had it all at one point – kick-ass wife, two great kids, and a career that challenged and excited him. Of course, that kind of happiness could only last for so long. Time went on, and things started to turn south. His wife left, and he broke down. She was his world, so his family took a back seat as he threw himself into his work, driving himself mad trying to find her.

He had a pretty good idea of why she left – to fix his mistake. He knew she was off with Hartley, or should he say Volkoff, but he had no idea how to locate them. So he had kept working on the new version, hoping that would redeem him and possibly allow him to find his wife.

But the more he worked, the riskier it became. He realized that soon enough the wrong people would be coming after him, possibly using his children as bait. He would be damned if he put them in danger. So, he did the only thing he could think of – he ran.

He often liked to tell himself that it was the right thing to do. Torn between being a loving father and being a hero, he thought he was a bit of both. He could finish his project for the government, continue searching for his wife, and protect his kids. He kept telling himself that by leaving his normal life behind, he allowed his kids to have what he never could. This was what was best for all.

He didn't like to think about the pancakes he promised his daughter, or the missed bonding opportunities with his son, or the fact that he may never see either of them again. He hated how he never acted like the father he wanted to be, but instead was forced to act distant and disinterested. He hated how he didn't even know where his wife was. Most of all, he really hated the CIA right now.

He had his fears about whom the Intersect would go to – perhaps a traitor, someone who would abuse it, or someone who couldn't handle it. He even had his fears that all of his hard work would be for naught and it would just remain a clunky computer, nothing more.

Of his fears, this was the worst. It could not go to his son. He wouldn't let it.

After all he had done to prevent Charles from being exposed to this horrible life, he would be damned if this was how it happened. If his son downloaded this database, if Charles became the Intersect, the government would literally own him. They would turn him into a killing machine, cold and lifeless, living a life only meant for the rare true patriots, the desperate, and the heartless. He was a good boy, a smart boy, and Stephen knew he could never survive in the field.

He should've seen it coming. They were so similar, down to their brown eyes and curly hair. He could easily see himself in his son, so much so that he feared Charles would someday end up like him – too smart for his own good, blinded by patriotism and love. Their minds worked the same; their humor, interests, and aptitude were virtually identical.

Stephen was the only person to successfully download the Intersect, so of course Charles would inherit the trait as well. The only other person to download the Intersect had completely altered personalities and turned evil. Seriously, like comic book evil. Stephen honestly wouldn't be surprised if Volkoff slipped the occasional 'Muhaha' when running his company.

That was another reason why he was nervous – he destroyed the man's life. He knew his son was special, able to absorb raw data at the young age of ten and survive, but this could literally take his personality.

No, there were too many factors, too many things that could go wrong. Charles would either die in the field, die from the Intersect, or die in the sense of losing what makes him such a good kid. This life was not for him. Stephen made the decision the second he learned whom the probable Intersect candidate would be. His son would not get the Intersect, by any means necessary.

He used Charles' roommate, Agent Larkin, to set up a plan. As soon as his interview was scheduled, Stephen, or rather, Orion, would tell Larkin and send him to stop any thoughts of recruiting his son in their tracks. If this project was as important as they said it was, then that might be harder than expected. They had to think that what was shown wasn't true, perhaps even forged.

Following that logic, he knew what Larkin had to do. He knew the consequences of this, but reasoned an expulsion was recoverable. However, if Charles got the Intersect, that would change his life permanently.

The thought of his heartbroken son disturbed him, but he knew what was best for him. In just a few weeks, his son would be far away from this life, off to live the happy, normal life he was always meant to have.

With that, he continued on his work, more determined than ever to finish and move on.

* * *

A/N 2: Please review, they all helped a lot last time. Also, Chapter 3 will most likely be coming Monday the 8th; I still want to keep to a relatively consistent schedule.


	3. Challengers

A/N: No you are not imagining things, this is actually a new chapter. It was quite a wait, so I would understand if some of you had to go back and reread. Apologies will be in the chapter end notes, so for now I'm sure you want to start reading. I've made you wait long enough.

But first, I have to give my high praises to the wonderful Uplink2. He was unbelievably helpful in guiding me and getting me on my feet again. He not only got me to actually start writing for this story again, but cleaned up the chapter to something readable. Half the credit if not more belongs to him, and his editorially brilliant ways.

It seems I always end up posting on some anniversay, so happy (or sad) one year Chuck finale anniversary! In celebration, I give you a 9k+ chapter. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Chuck, NBC and WB do. "A Comet Appears" is by The Shins and "Challengers" is by The New Pornographers. I'm not making any money off this, so please don't sue.

* * *

**Gamma Delta Phi House**

**20 March 2003**

**13:56 PST**

There was something to be said about the difference between night and day. For Chuck, the difference was noticeably off-putting. He had no idea why, but every day, without fail, his mood shifted to that of vulnerability and honesty. What he could attribute it to, he hadn't an idea. Perhaps it was the stress or the exhaustion of a long day that always intensified his emotions and allowed him to be more open. The lack of light the night provided seemed to have transformed into the clarity of his own thoughts that the business of the day could not allow.

At times, the freedom of uninhibited communication was liberating; at other times, it was crippling. So often he had encountered hardened and shielded hearts, and he found this to leave him on unequal footing. He could offer his musings and theories, but no one opened up their minds enough to return the favor. Even so, it was the favorite part of his day. It was the absolute honesty that drew him, as well as his fascination with sky itself.

It was a painting to him. The dark canvas lit up with luminous stars and the comforting glow of the moon that the sun could not deliver. This held a simple beauty to him. It was this, and the vastness and infinite possibilities the black mirage emulated. It reminded him of the outer world, letting him feel the impact of immeasurable time and space, effectively removing him from the trivial problems in his world. It was the reason astronomy fascinated him so much – the endless possibilities for hope and change. It set him flying at night and kept him grounded by day.

His prosperity in the late hours greatly influenced his spritely and energetic attitude; it was his time for rejuvenation, used to cleanse. The unavoidable lessening of the daylight brought out his inner self, the man disappointed in his insignificance, in his ignorance, and in those that he chose to surround himself with. His time for contemplation was often a bitter one, but necessary for him to carry on without the weight of his burdens crushing him.

When he spoke to Sarah, it felt good to have the courage to come up to and speak with a woman he normally wouldn't. He reached out to her, and her kindness to him shone through almost as brightly as the moon that night.

But now, there was no cover of darkness to hide behind, and he had to face the consequences of essentially bearing his soul to a woman he barely knew.

Their greeting was awkward, as was the silent moments that followed. Bless her she tried, as did he, but initially, it was a very uncomfortable encounter.

She wore her smile like a champ, all perfect white teeth and bare pink lips, but it didn't reach her eyes. He didn't expect it to. Her hair was down and wavy, the light color oddly pairing well with her pale skin. He noticed she dressed comfortably but fashionably, she adorning a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a simple pink V-neck shirt with three-quarter sleeves. Everything hugged her curves all too well, much to Chuck's dismay and secret delight. He did not need any reminders of her exercise attire, nor should he be thinking about her body in any way. Otherwise, he could get very distracted.

He guided her to sit on his twin bed while he went to his desk, careful not to cause any unwanted physical contact. She kept her head down and timidly sat on his bed while he plopped down on the computer chair across from her. Silence filled the air, creating a tense and stifled atmosphere.

He was slightly disheartened. He figured, with the intimate conversation they had, they would be past the initial timid stages of friendship. She folded her hands in her lap, seemingly determined to rid every last grain of dirt from her cuticles. He once again cursed himself for not possessing the proper charm to better the situation, fueling his longing for Bryce to join them as well, if only to compensate for his lack of skills in communicating with women.

He had always been friendly with those around him, and he took pride in his loyal and expansive group of friends. Social interactions were never a problem for him; however, they became more difficult when the fairer sex was involved. He was used to relying on his charisma to alleviate any discomfort, but looking into his new friend's indifferent face, he felt the need to go a bit above and beyond if things were to go smoothly. The last thing he needed was an hour of avoidance and dismissal; he was not sure his ego could take it.

He cleared his throat, finally ready to break the silence. "So…why don't we just start?" he stared down at the notebook in his lap, seemingly looking through his notes. "Okay. What is the name of the molecule bunny-O-bunny?"

She looked at him as if he grew a second head. Her expression changed from fear to embarrassment, and he had to bite back a laugh. She was clearly distressed and hurriedly rifled through her notes in a fluster, frantically searching for the answer. After wrestling through her bag for a minute, she paused, and then glanced back at him. "I'm sorry, what? I thought we weren't talking about chemist–"

"Please, Sarah, just answer the question," he interrupted, putting on the most serious face he could muster.

She looked like she was actually trying to figure it out, and he almost burst out laughing right then and there. Poor girl, she must not be too good at chemistry either.

She huffed out a breath of frustration. The action reminded him of a bookish uniform-clad schoolgirl upset because she didn't get called on by the teacher. The image made it even harder to hold in his laughter. "Okay, I give up, what do you call it?"

He gave her a sly smile and replied, "An ether bunny!" He guffawed hysterically, hand over stomach and tears in his eyes. It was a little forced, but even if he looked like an ass, he knew it would be worth it. If that wasn't the greatest icebreaker ever, he didn't know what was.

But when he vision finally cleared and he looked at her, her expression hadn't changed. She looked at him blankly, without a hint of recognition on her face. A slight fear crept through him and he wondered if she had even gotten the joke. He saw the very moment she took in his expression, and, to his relief, she looked slightly amused.

"That's, uh, that's a chemistry joke. Because ether is a functional group with an oxygen atom attached to two–"

"Chuck, I took chemistry. That was just so bad; I couldn't justify it with a laugh." She smiled at him, and he laughed for while after that – partially from nerves, partially from relief, but mostly from the fact that she was willing to work with him.

When he calmed, his chest felt significantly lighter and his smile came naturally, instinctually. Certainly, over the years, Chuck knew that making a fool out of himself was probably the easiest way for someone to like him. It was a good thing then, that he did it so easily.

"Hey, at least I'm trying here!" He finally sat up from his desk chair, using wild hand gestures to convey his point.

She snorted at him, and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear. "You're a bigger nerd than I thought you were."

He gave her a smug smile and sat back in his chair again. "Thank you."

"So, uh…" She held up her notebook for Fleming's class, shaking it a little.

He would never admit this, but he actually studied all of his notes about an hour before. Perhaps he gave this little meeting a little more thought than he should have, but he liked to be thorough. The material for the class was easy enough to be able to study briefly before the test and spew out before forgetting it completely, but he imagined that this was not why Sarah needed help. She gave him the impression that she was very studious, therefore most likely took very good notes. Still, whatever she required his assistance for he was determined to be prepared.

"Please, don't insult me. I have all the information you need." He tapped his index finger to his temple.

She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, smirking at his newly found arrogance. "You seem to think very highly of yourself."

He shrugged his shoulders. "You said it yourself, I'm a nerd."

"And I have a feeling you won't let me forget it."

It excited him a little more than he'd like to admit that she didn't seem deterred by his pride in his nerdiness. He also loved the fact that, initial awkwardness aside, conversation came easily between them.

There was a knock at the door, and they both turned out of curiosity. Chuck, facing the door, looked up while Sarah spun her whole body around and put her hand behind her back. Chuck didn't know what she was reaching for, but he had seen Bryce do that before when he was startled, and thought it was something they must've picked up from being around each other so much.

Not a few seconds later Bryce popped his head inside, eyes searching and finding Sarah immediately.

"Hey buddy! I didn't want to interrupt, but Sarah told me she would be here, so I thought I'd join."

If Chuck were to be honest with himself, he was actually a bit relieved. Being alone with Sarah caused a great uneasiness in him. For so long he wanted to believe that girls and boys could be friends without any notions of being more, but he could not deny his attraction to her. Not only was the threat of humiliation looming over him, but surely the mutual friend would sooth his growing insecurity.

Chuck gestured for Bryce to come in and he immediately sat beside Sarah and gave her a quick peck on the lips. Jealousy flared through him, as well as discomfort. Seeing that public display of affection not only allowed him to inappropriately intrude on their private moment, but also reminded him of the intimacy lacking in his own relationship. Small kisses and sitting close always reminded him of their love, but seeing it thrive in others when it did not with him and Jill only made him miss it more. He quickly looked away and sat back in his desk chair.

"Right, so we were just about to get started," Chuck said. He turned towards his desk to get a manila folder. "Okay, so I got these to help me study for the final coming up. They're those encoded images Fleming kept talking about in class. When I asked about them, Fleming didn't seem to have a problem letting me borrow them. Here, take a look." He handed Bryce the photo.

Sarah took the picture and stared at it intently, but her eyes where vacant of any recognition other than a pretty rose in a garden. She handed it back to Bryce, who although slightly more responsive, came up empty as well. He handed it back to Chuck, defeated.

Chuck belatedly realized how difficult it would be to teach such an elusive concept. He could repeat facts and rules like a damn dictionary but conceptually, he just followed instinct. "Okay, so what Fleming keeps talking about is subliminal recognition. So, now that you've seen the picture, what else can you tell me?"

"Roses are red?" Bryce said, chuckling a little to himself.

Chuck chose to ignore his snarky remark and turned to Sarah, but she looked completely lost. He could sympathize, remembering the trouble he had at first too.

"It's okay. Here, this is how I do it." He held the picture in his hand, extended his arm completely, and leaned back on his chair, putting as much distance between himself and the picture as possible. "Sometimes, it helps to get a full view. If you study it too much, it just becomes lines and shapes and colors. Or…" he brought the picture impossibly close, squinting like an old man, "you could look at every detail. Look at any subtle changes or irregularities in color or shape."

He then started moving it around looking at it from different angles and distances. "Once you get the image in your mind, close your eyes. For me, I can't really explain it, I just know, there was something else going on in that picture. So I write it down. Eventually, I could just look at a picture, and see what he wanted us to see." He gave Sarah the picture. "Here, try it again."

The entire time he was explaining, Bryce took on the most concentrated look he'd ever seen. Chuck had to admit, to be able to do what it seemed nobody else could was impressive, but Bryce seemed to have such an extreme fascination with every word he said. His eyes would focus on Chuck intensely, following his every move. Chuck was disconcerted when he could feel Bryce's eyes on him, but chose to focus on Sarah instead, since she requested his help in the first place.

He was expecting a different reaction from her. Boredom, curiosity, or confusion. He saw that with almost everyone he spoke to, especially when the topic was computers. Instead, he found her to be attentive and cooperative. She was now looking at the picture again, moving it around and changing her position like she was trying out new contacts and couldn't see. A small smile pulled at his lips; he wondered if he looked that ridiculous when he was demonstrating. He could tell she was trying, but the frustration on her face was so clear that little had to be said as she huffed and handed the picture over to Bryce. He did the same, and again, with minute results.

They continued to pass around the pictures Chuck had in the folder, Bryce and Sarah taking up to five minutes with each image. There was a weird silence, only slight movements and sighs of irritation and disappointment. Chuck would periodically tell them to take a break and they would review any other material from the class, but Sarah knew everything she needed to. If it wasn't for the written portion of the test, he was sure she would do well. Chuck couldn't help but feel apologetic, failing in his attempts to do the one thing he was asked of. He watched his friends struggle with something he could barely understand himself, but nevertheless kept giving them new pictures to try to interpret until he ran out. The last one was a golden retriever wearing a Christmas hat.

Like before, neither could really see what was encoded. Bryce held out the picture, returning it to Chuck. "So, what do you see?" Bryce asked. His voice was strained and tense, clear evidence of his embarrassment and impatience.

Chuck took another look at the picture and closed his eyes. The images were fuzzy and hard to grasp, but still present and lucid in the back of his mind, enough to make him certain. A jack-o-lantern, a thermometer, a traffic sign.

"Lots of things. Look, it's hard to say them all. Just keep looking, keep studying the pictures. Remember, your subconscious knows, you just have to recognize those subliminal images."

Bryce spoke up again. "So you can do this all the time? You can just look at the picture, and see what's encoded?"

Chuck looked down and shrugged. He really had no idea how it happened, but it always did. "Yeah I guess. I can't really help it if that's what you're asking."

Bryce just scoffed and shook his head. "That's incredible man," he said, and for the first time, taking on a tone a reverence and almost admiration.

"Still, I wish there was more I could do to help," Chuck said as he put the picture back into his folder.

He risked a glance at Sarah, finding her nostrils flared and her jaw set. He had been paying close attention to her reactions as they went along. She had gone from concerned, to agitated, to defeated, and he instantly felt a crushing guilt that he had done nothing to help. He owed her, after all.

"Yeah, you could give me the answers to the next test," Sarah mumbled, but loud enough for both to hear.

"Hey, I'm nice, but not that nice. I thought it was implied that I'm a good person." He chuckled, and again Bryce became very stiff, giving him a strained smile. Sarah seemed to notice it too, and eyed him curiously.

Bryce cleared his throat and hurriedly stood to leave. "It's almost three, why don't we head over to meet Jill?"

Chuck's eyes widened a bit at his friend's sudden outburst, but he played along knowing that Bryce had been a little off lately. He assumed it was lack of sleep since he started seeing Sarah. He remembered how distracted he had been when he was first with Jill, and how anxious he was when she wasn't by his side. With that in mind, he turned to Sarah and asked, "Um…sure. Sarah, wanna come?"

He held his breath, as to why he still felt so nervous around her he felt no need to analyze, but immediately brightened when she nodded her agreement. He was relieved that her mood seemed to improve the second they stopped talking about the oh-so-daunting encoded images. She had done so much to help him the other day, it was the least he could do to invite her to hang out, even if they would be discussing a class she wasn't taking.

Plus, he was a bit anxious for Sarah to meet Jill. He feared Sarah thought ill of Jill after his complaints of her, so he leaped at the chance to redeem her and their coupledom. And if all went well, Sarah and Jill could possibly become friends. Maybe, and he was certain this was wishful thinking, Jill would model herself after Sarah, and go back to being the loving girlfriend he believed Sarah was to Bryce. Being around another affectionate couple could be good for them, especially since it was a couple so close to them both.

* * *

**15:02 PST**

Fortunately, the campus library, Green Library, was maybe twenty minutes worth of walking distance away from the frat house. Chuck and Sarah organized their things quickly before they set off.

Both Sarah and Bryce were extremely considerate and conscious of him, never letting him fall by the wayside in their conversation. There was an even exchange between the three of them, each pulling and pushing, aligned and moving like a well manufactured tricycle. He never felt so comfortable being that third wheel. He was slightly amused to find that their formation along the sidewalk did in fact take such a shape, with Chuck in between and a half a step ahead of them.

Thankfully, they didn't act so much as a couple but rather as friends, he assumed, for his benefit. He disliked PDA, even in his own relationships. Well, relationship. Besides a few rare dates in high school, Jill was his first. His first _everything_. He found the physical aspect of any relationship to be extremely personal, even if it was supposedly of a casual nature. Therefore, even hand holding or exchanges of heated glances, at least in his interpretation, might as well mean the couple in question was about to get naked. Being witness to it always felt voyeuristic and awkward. His oversensitivity earned him teasing comments and questions of his virginal status, but he remained strong in his opinions.

He had a similar view on one-night stands and the like, because that practice also ruined the concept of physical intimacy being with someone you have romantic intentions towards. It was difficult to hold such a belief and remain friends with those who partook in such a casual lifestyle.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a commotion, what sounded like a wounded puppy, towards his right. He, Bryce, and Sarah were walking in a somewhat wooded area of campus, for the most part completely isolated. However, when he turned towards the noise, he caught erratic and violent movement near a somewhat secluded area behind a cluster of three foot tall chamise.

The evergreen shrub was wild and lively, a perfect reflection of movement hidden behind it. The sun shone brightly and intrusively, forcing Chuck to stop and squint to improve his vision, earning curious and concerned looks from his two companions. What he saw greatly disturbed him, igniting a passionate and sudden compulsion to run either towards or away from the scene - he hadn't yet decided which he would follow.

There stood, or rather hunched, before him a young, probably eighteen year old, skinny and frail freshman, being attacked by two imposing, much larger looking men. It was white Urkel was getting beat up by two Terminators. The young man had his books loosely scattered on the ground, most likely because Terminator I and Terminator II had thrown them in their rage.

The pitiful sight stirred something inside Chuck. He felt anger, even disappointment, but most recognizable was his sympathy towards the young man. It reminded him of his high school days, back when his confidence was significantly lower and his social life was virtually non-existent. The awkward sci-fi obsessed orphan hadn't had the easiest time in high school, nor did he have a large expanse of friends, but he had a fiery sister and lively friend to back him up along the way.

He knew that he had changed from his high school self, but he never forgot the weakness he felt and the helplessness that plagued him in his younger days. The tableau presented to him was a painful reminder of this, and spurred him into action.

He didn't check to see if Bryce or Sarah had noticed the act or his reaction to it, nor did he hear them calling after him in confusion. He had to act before he chickened out.

With the memories of shame and embarrassment fresh in his mind, he sprinted forward right up to the muscular African-American man currently hell-bent on breaking Urkel's glasses. He held out his arm between the two of them, serving as a brief barrier before shoving Urkel back towards a nearby tree. In doing so, he briefly succeeded in stopping possibly one punch, maybe two, before he looked into the maniac's eyes and tried his best not to cower away. His eyes were vicious and black with rage, making it almost impossible to keep eye contact for very long.

He tucked Urkel behind him, stuck his chest out, and turned to face the two beasts.

The two men stood in front of him, both perfect mirrors of the other's expression. The other man, who he had not yet had the privilege to encounter, spoke first. "I would step back if I were you."

The threat was not necessary, for the way his eyes burned into Chuck gave him a perfectly clear idea of their intentions towards him.

Chuck, with wide eyes and a fresh layer of sweat forming on his skin, closed his fists tightly and held them up in his best impression of a fighting stance. He was a ball of nervous apprehension and chaotic unease, but managed to keep from running for his life.

"I'm not afraid," he all but whispered, his voice cracking a little. He paused before he said, "Okay, maybe a little, but I'm not going anywhere." He swallowed audibly before raising his fists a little higher, preparing to fight.

Less than a second later, he felt the somewhat familiar throbbing in his head followed by a loss of equilibrium and a jolt in his body from hitting the solid ground, indicative of being punched in face. _Hard._

He had very little indication as to what happened next other than random grunts and a few choice expletives. He felt disoriented and tired, but fought to stay awake long enough to be certain that the uproar had stopped. He lost his sense of time, but eventually things quieted down. Satisfied that the situation had been resolved and realizing exactly how difficult it was to stay lucid, he closed his eyes and settled into an impromptu nap.

* * *

Sarah felt sick.

All her life, she had been proactive in whatever she did. Whatever her father, her partner, or her boss assigned her, she would take the task head on and complete it. It was never in her nature to take things half-ass.

There was, however, another side to this quality that gave the complete opposite impression. She was proactive in other's wants and demands, but seldom in her own. In the back of her mind, she always had a problem with this, but chose to justify it in some way, despite her slowly deteriorating dignity and self-respect.

It rarely ever happened, but she did see some discrepancies sporadically throughout her time in Stanford. Generally, it was assault and hardly ever looked fatal; so, she was told to stay out of it. College campus crime was no secret to her, but there was little she could actually do about it. And that really bothered her.

She and Bryce weren't actually undercover, especially since Bryce was still using his real name, but according to the rest of the Stanford student body, they were just some average students, with no victim-saving abilities.

No international missions were involved, no one was plotting against them, no one was dying, and no agents were being threatened, so of course it didn't require an international agent's attention. On some level, that did make a lot of sense. But in reality, when you were in the situation, it was a gross misuse of two perfectly capable fighting fists.

Consequently, as they were walking and she and Bryce saw the poor boy in his pitiful predicament, she felt a sickening wave of shame and anger crash and settle in the pit of her stomach. Here she was again, witness to a horrible reality, and stuck to the spot like a lead weight, heavy with the obligations and burdens of a government drone.

It got worse when Chuck took notice, and she feared he would try to step in. The two large men would barely be enough for one trained agent to take, a fairly easy fight for two, but poor Chuck wouldn't last very long at all.

She made brief eye contact with Bryce while Chuck was distracted, hoping, maybe, that he'd be willing to go in with her despite whatever probably non-existent threat it pertained to them and their careers. He had the decency to pause and look contemplative, but still shook his head ever so slightly. Just as she'd suspected, he wasn't willing to risk it.

That is until Chuck suddenly surged forward, doing the very thing she hoped he wouldn't. Or maybe that she'd hoped he would. That stupid, untrained, boneheaded, brave man did the one thing two experienced field agents couldn't and tried to rescue someone who truly deserved to be rescued.

That made her feel impossibly proud and nauseous at the same time. She envied his courage and admired his good heart, but this only served to make her impossibly smaller and weak by comparison.

Chuck caught up to the scene and performed a strange combination of moves she assumed was an imitation of old Kung-Fu movies. It was briefly successful in blocking some of the men's punches. However, he quickly lost the element of surprise and the two goons finally took notice of him.

That was when she finally snapped out of her observational trance and grabbed Bryce's arm to coax him into following her lead. She hoped to get there before things got ugly for Chuck, but it was too late. They were maybe two steps away when she heard the all too familiar sound of a fist forcefully meeting someone's face.

He fell to the grass violently, and she took that as her cue to release her pent up fury on the good for nothing savages. They must've felt so satisfied with themselves for defeating two nerds half their size, but she was willing to bet that that would change soon. She smiled evilly to herself – they were about to be beaten up by a girl.

To her relief though, she wasn't doing this alone. Bryce was at her side, following her lead.

As the two goons turned back to the boy, she took her opportunity to make herself known. Normally, she would prefer to attack from behind, but for once, she wanted it clear to all exactly who she was and what she was doing.

She tapped the man that had punched Chuck on the shoulder, and he abruptly turned to face her. She smiled sweetly at him, and he chuckled briefly before urging his partner to turn around as well. They both grinned as they took in the arrogant, young couple before them. They began what could only be described as one of the most sarcastic, idiotic, and irritating conversations Sarah had ever witnessed.

"Well, look at the pretty girl here. The blonde is quite a sight as well," the first one said, grinning at Bryce. Bryce remained stoic, refusing to take their bate, but his glare intensifying marginally.

"What do you think, should we let them give it a shot or just add to our little pile?"

"Hmmm, I don't know. Let's let them decide." He raised his eyebrow at them in challenge, much like a knight would raise his sword before battle.

The two men were stupidly within arm's reach of both Sarah and Bryce, so before they could prod again, she turned to punch the man in front of her with her left hand, but he quickly blocked it with his right. He immediately followed with a jab with his left hand, but he was too big to be very fast. Before it could land, she sidestepped to her right and twisted to push his outstretched arm away with her right hand. This left him off balance and his left side exposed. She quickly took advantage of his vulnerable state, leaving two quick punches to his ribs, grabbing his left shoulder and kneeing him in his groin. His breath left and he doubled over, but she kept her hands on his shoulder and swung her left leg in front of her. At once, she pushed his shoulder back with her hands and kicked her foot back into his shin, effectively sweeping the leg and toppling him to the ground.

He lay face up and out of breath where she quickly kneeled over him, digging her knee into his lung. He was significantly weakened at this point, whether from shock or exhaustion, she wasn't sure, but she seized the opportunity to punch him several times in his face. She continued until she was confident that he wouldn't be fighting anytime soon, and backed off to give her knuckles a rest. He would definitely be bruised, but she was sure nothing but maybe a nose was broken.

Confident that she successfully avenged Chuck's injury, she looked over to Bryce and saw that his goon was in a similar state as hers. He looked up and his eyes met hers, both smiling in triumph. This victory felt more gratifying than all the others she had in the past. It felt justified and right, because for once, she actually had a reason to fight.

"You check on Chuck and I'll make sure the kid is all right," Bryce ordered, slightly out of breath.

She went over to Chuck just a few feet away, now concerned for his well-being. It seemed the punch caught him in the right spot and with enough force to actually knock him out. She realized early on in her training that knocking a guy out with one punch was not as easy as it looked, in fact nearly possible, and definitely a rarity. So of course, Chuck picked the one guy who could do it well.

He looked so vulnerable and weak, but she now knew better of this man. His will was stronger than hers was, and his selflessness impressed her greatly. His naivety and innocence was in complete contrast to his warrior-like personality and audacious tendencies. In short, he was a greater man than she ever expected.

She checked his heartbeat and breathing, both indicating that he would soon be regaining consciousness. It was extremely doubtful that he would have any permanent injuries, and from the looks of it didn't have a concussion. She figured a nasty bruise at best, but in the end, he'd be fine.

However, they were already late to meet Chuck's girlfriend, and with the adrenaline still coursing through her, she became impatient. She decided to nudge Chuck a little to wake him, hoping to move on quickly without drawing too much attention.

Bryce was over by a tree talking to the boy and presumably making sure he was all right. He too seemed to be in well enough shape. Not a few moments later, they both walked over to where Sarah sat kneeling over Chuck.

They stood before them right as Chuck was sitting up, orienting himself and adjusting his eyes to the light. He looked so lost, frantically taking in his surroundings. He had yet to find the two unconscious bodies nearby, but found her and immediately looked relieved. She took his hands and helped him stand. After he was on his feet he held her hands a second longer than necessary, squeezing them lightly and smiling at her in thanks.

Soon after, he faced an animated and enthusiastic young boy. He had looked tired and worn like a wilting flower, but immediately turned up and brightened upon seeing Chuck standing upright. "Oh my gosh! Is that The Piranha?"

He was pointing to Chuck but directing the question towards Sarah, however she had no idea what he was talking about. She gave Chuck a questioning look, but he still seemed a bit overwhelmed, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"Um…what? Oh yeah, The Piranha, in flesh. Um, nice to meet you man, how're you doing?" he said in a groggy voice. Chuck stretched his hand out to shake. The boy took his hand and shook it in a way that looked very uncomfortable for Chuck.

"Yeah, yeah I'm good. Just a few guys looking for a paper I promised them. But I decided to serve some justice and refuse to give it to them. They didn't respond to my threats of expulsion very well. They seemed to be under the influence. I'm thinking something a little bit stronger than cannabis, but it may've just been alcohol, although it is early for that kind of irresponsible behavior. It makes me wonder sometimes what these people do during their free time and still be able to attend such an elite school, but I guess I found that out when they demanded I find a way to cheat for them. Anyways – yeah, I'm fine. These guys were awesome by the way. They came in after you and kicked their asses! It was awesome, like pow, pow, punch, flip, ax kick. It was like Flash and Wondergirl came together just to save me! Er, us. They're not actually a real couple anyways. But they totally should be after today. And you should see how high they can kick! Very flexible. Could I have all three of your autographs?"

Sarah wasn't even sure if he took one breath throughout that whole ordeal. She was starting to figure out why those men became so irritated with him – he was certainly starting to get on her nerves.

"Okay well, it was good to meet you. Chuck, if you're feeling better, we actually have to meet someone shortly. Ready?" They said their goodbyes quickly and guided Chuck away from the meddlesome, hyperactive boy before he could answer.

Chuck took one last look at the scene behind him. "Um, hey guys?"

_And so the questions begin_, she thought to herself. Neither said anything and waited for him to continue.

"Would you mind telling what the hell just happened?"

Bryce and Sarah collectively sighed, dreading the lies and half-truths they had to dole out. Sarah let Bryce take the lead.

"You know man, you were in trouble. We wanted to help." He smiled warmly and patted Chuck on the shoulder, but Chuck looked far from appeased.

"You mind telling me how that's even possible? Those guys were huge!"

Bryce kept an even face, the perfect model for how to react when establishing an explanation extemporaneously. "Sarah and I, we met at a self-defense class. Didn't I tell you? She's awesome, man."

Bryce then looked to her, tagging her in. "We just caught them by surprise. Nothing that a good kick in the groin can't fix." It wasn't a complete lie, and she hoped their weak explanation would be enough to mollify Chuck's curiosity.

Chuck's mouth dropped open slightly, closing and opening several times. "So you're telling me, that you and Sarah just knocked those guys out, using techniques from a self-defense class?"

They both nodded.

"Can I sign up?" he said, smiling a little. Sarah let out a much needed breath in relief. The worst was over.

"You just stick to looking pretty," Bryce said, ruffling his hair and laughing as they continued their path to the library.

* * *

**Green Library**

**15:37 PST**

Thankfully, the rest of their walk was uneventful. Chuck kept rubbing his cheek where he was punched, like a child touching a stove after being told it would be hot. Both she and Bryce advised against it, knowing the pain of the burn soon to some, but his curiosity got the better of him.

Jill was waiting for them at a large table near the back of the library. She was with an impressive, foreign looking man and they were both sitting up with oddly perfect posture, as if waiting for military inspection. She must have been waiting for them a while, because as they entered she was looking directly at the doorway and immediately spotted them.

Sarah started judging Jill immediately. Jill hardly seemed comfortable like one would expect, but more analytical, calculated. Jill was cold where Chuck was warm, she was shielded where he was open. In short, Sarah did not get a good vibe from her at all.

Sarah was especially suspicious of the way her body language changed in the blink of eye – from stingy and cold to relaxed and casual as soon as they came near. In addition, her overenthusiastic greeting towards Chuck, one including a too-wide grin, outstretched arms and a loud 'hi!', didn't match up to Chuck's depiction of her only a few days ago. Jill was way too happy, way too friendly, and came off as forced and fake. Unfortunately, Chuck ate it up.

"Baby, what happened to your face?" Jill gave Chuck an exaggerated pout while touching his cheek. Sarah had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

Chuck looked elated to see her. He hugged her and held with the tenderness and firmness of a man afraid she would slip from his grasp. He treasured Jill like she wished to be treasured sometimes, but knew she would never find such a relationship. She realized that about him; he could hold your gaze and make you feel like you were the only person in the room. That never really bothered her until now.

"Nothing, just a little run-in, I'll be fine," Chuck said after they separated from their embrace.

Jill took a step back and eyed him curiously. "Well, that's not like you. You really shouldn't put yourself in danger like that, Chuck. I wouldn't want to you to get hurt."

"Don't worry; this is the most excitement I've had in years."

"Good." She patted his shoulder and turned to Sarah, giving her another sugary, deceitful smile. "And who might you be?"

Bryce guided Sarah by the small of her back to step forward. "Oh sorry, this is actually my girlfriend, Sarah. Sarah, this is Jill."

Sarah put on her own go-to fake smile; although, she was certain she did a better job of it. "Nice to meet you, I've heard so much about you."

Jill gave her a short, strong handshake. "All good things, I'm sure. So, since we're doing introductions, I'd like you all to meet Victor. He's from Russia and wanted to meet a few new people. I met him in my chemistry class and I thought I could help him catch up. So Victor, this is my friend Bryce, and my boyfriend Chuck."

The large bear of a man, Victor, perked up at his name and stood from his seat to greet him. "So you Charles Bartowski?" he said in a thick Russian accent.

Jill never mentioned Chuck's last name, nor did she introduce him as Charles. Everyone was a little taken aback by his strange outburst, but Victor didn't notice at all. He continued to give Chuck a hard, scheming stare.

Chuck looked around nervously. "Um, yeah. Do I know you?"

"No, no. I just want to make sure you right man." His smile reminded Sarah of a hungry snake. It was unnatural and unsettling; she suspected his smile only meant trouble.

"Okay, well nice to meet you. How bout we get started?"

They all took their seats, Jill, Chuck, and Victor on one side and Bryce and Sarah on the other, leaving Sarah directly across from Jill.

The next hour or so left Sarah a lot of time to observe and deduce what she knew of the people at the table. They started talking about chemistry, something about titration and indicators and thiosulfate. But as expected, Sarah had a hard time keeping up at that level.

Although, it seemed no one at the table was really engaging with each other. It felt like a poker game, each player hiding and hoping to gain something, analyzing every movement and word spoken. Soon, Sarah thought, she would find Jill's tell.

Jill would sneak glances between Chuck, Bryce, Victor and Sarah, but unfortunately for her, never very surreptitiously. Sometimes she would do blatantly seductive maneuvers towards Chuck, leaning in closely, playing with his hair, touching his hand. They had their own form of a give and take, but it was anything but playful. A cat and mouse routine, with the players switching roles systematically. Jill would be elusive and cold and Chuck would pine after her. Jill would then turn around and hold his kind heart against him, using sex to distract him from their inevitable break up. Even the thought of such a cycle left her irritated, and she now had a renewed appreciation for Chuck's frustration.

Jill quickly pecked his cheek, but stupidly pressed on the side that would soon be bruised. Chuck winced and pulled away, but managed to give a strained smile.

Sarah had seen it done before – Jill was marking her territory. It made Sarah smile every time Chuck rejected her. It was painfully obvious how uncomfortable he was, but Jill refused to take the hint. Either she didn't know Chuck at all, or she was purposely ignoring him. Sarah could feel the second Chuck's annoyance turned to aggravation, creating a tension at the table.

Sarah kept a close eye on Victor as well. He just sat there nodding, an emotionless bobble head. It was clear that he had a weak grasp on the English language, so trying to teach him chemistry was pointless, and she again wondered why Jill and Victor were even attempting such a thing. Jill was the clear expert in the group, with Chuck and Bryce adding things along the way. However, most of the time Victor directed his questions toward Chuck, always holding an uncharacterized focus on anything he said.

Bryce kept to himself mostly. It had been clear to Sarah in Chuck's bedroom earlier that he was uncomfortable with any displays of affection between her and Bryce, so she decided to refrain from touching him to reinforce their cover, or for any other reason, like she usually did. Bryce's posture indicated that he was on alert, so she could only assume that he was also keeping an eye on Victor, but just listened the majority of the time.

Things were starting to wind down and their conversation slowly stared turning away from chemistry and on to other classes.

Victor, once again, spoke only to Chuck. "So, Charles, you like computer?"

"Yeah, it's pretty cool that I can turn a hobby into a career."

Sarah had yet to see his computer skills, but she could assume he was very talented.

"Oh yeah, they call him 'The Piranha'. He's the best computer hacker in town," Bryce said, clearly proud of his friend's reputation.

She vaguely remembered the mention of the name earlier in the day, but focused on Victor's suddenly peaked interest. "So what else you do Charles? Like other classes?"

Bryce answered for him again, "Yeah, we were just studying with him earlier today. Damn class doesn't make any sense to me or Sarah."

"Do know Fleming? He in contact with Charles?"

Bryce immediately stiffened in his chair. Not only did nobody mention Dr. Fleming, but he was actually Bryce's recruiter and would be his future contact once he left Stanford. Whoever this man was, he definitely knew more than he should. Thank God he was doing a horrible job at covering it up.

Bryce stood up and started to stretch. "Okay, well, I'm actually going to head out so, Chuck, Sarah, I'll see you later?" Sarah knew exactly where he'd go. He would double check his contacts and make sure everything was safe, as well as check to see who Victor was and who he may be involved with. "Jill, nice to see you again. Victor, it was a pleasure." He smiled at them before turning to leave, effectively avoiding any suspicion from the others at the table.

Bryce ran off quickly, leaving the four of them to watch as he went. They agreed to end the study session and head back to Chuck's frat house so Victor could meet some new friends. Chuck and Jill started walking ahead of Victor and Sarah, so neither could hear the other's conversation very well. Sarah noted again, amusedly, that they were not holding hands.

As they were walking, Victor decided to continue his own game of twenty questions. "Sarah, you work with Charles?"

She was a little surprised to hear him address her, but refused to show it. "Yes, Chuck and I are both in Fleming's class."

"He good with pictures? He do good tests?"

His agenda regarding Chuck was growing increasingly concentrated, warning her of his excitement. There was almost no disguising his ill intentions now, only giving further proof that he was close to what he was looking for. Now that he was talking with her though, she feared she would be the one to help him complete his endeavor. However, until she met up with Bryce and he gave her more information, she was conversing blindly. Still, there was no foreseeable harm in talking about Chuck's well-known aptitude.

"He's doing extraordinarily well. He's the only person I know that can see what Fleming is even talking about. It's actually pretty cool, if you ever get the chance to see it."

"That great news! Very interesting," he said, his deep, monotone voice becoming uncharacteristically animated. It was the first time she had seen him genuinely smile since meeting him. She suddenly got the horrible feeling that she had just done something very, very wrong.

* * *

**Gamma Delta Phi House**

**18:42 PST**

Victor stuck around the frat house for a little while longer before he rushed out, clearly anxious to leave. His behavior after their conversation left Sarah with a deepening feeling of anxiety and guilt. She did not feel good at all about this man.

Chuck and Jill went out for dinner, it being about seven o'clock by the time things were settled. Before he left, Chuck let Sarah stay in their room to wait for Bryce to return. He came in soon after, and Chuck and Jill left promptly.

Bryce stood before her, running a hand through his hair. She loathed the nervous tick; it only meant stress for her. "Okay, everything looks to be in order. I don't know about you, but this guy really shook me up. How the hell did he know about me?" He started pacing the room, which only served to make Sarah even more nervous.

"And he knew Chuck's full name."

"That too! That guy was just creepy! And like, the worst spy ever. This…this might be a real problem," he said as he looked at her with tired, weary eyes.

"What did you find out about him?" She spoke in an even, soothing voice, partially hoping to calm him down a bit, but mostly to keep herself grounded.

He shook his head a little as he spoke. "Not much, but they promised to get back to me with more details as soon as they have enough time to gather all the information. For now, all we know is that he's Russian and has a military background."

Sarah sighed. "Okay, that's definitely not a good sign. Do you know why he was interested in talking to Chuck?"

"No, and that makes it worse. I can't have Chuck getting involved in this." His voice was hard, determined, and deathly serious. It held more conviction than she thought appropriate.

He finally halted his pacing and plopped down on Chuck's bed. "Sarah, can I ask you a question?"

"Didn't you just ask me one?"

He didn't seem to appreciate her lame attempt at humor. But, as Chuck put it, at least she tried. "Okay, fine. What's up?"

He sighed and held his head in his hands. "Be honest, how did you think Chuck handled that fight earlier today on our way to the library?"

Sometimes, she really had no idea where his mind went or why, but she decided to indulge him nonetheless. "Well, he was certainly very brave, but objectively it was pretty foolish. He's a civilian, so taking on two thugs with no defense was pretty irresponsible. But, it wasn't a mission, Bryce; he did something that not a lot of normal people would."

He shook his head and continued to look down into his lap. "He is stupidly brave sometimes. And he cares about complete strangers."

"But that's what makes him a good person, right?" Bryce looked at her briefly, carefully considering her point. He simply nodded.

They were silent, both reflecting on their afternoon and what was said.

After a few moments, Bryce spoke up again. "Wouldn't it be a disaster if he became an agent?" he said with a dark, humorless chuckle to follow. The comment seemed to hold more weight than she would've thought.

Sarah remembered how guilty she felt for not standing up for the boy like Chuck had. He had the tenacity and compassion that so many agents lacked, and she envied him for it. He was intelligent, intuitive, and techno-oriented, with a quick injury recovery time. If he wasn't so spontaneous and kindhearted, he really could've made a great agent.

She could see him now, a new, enthusiastic and bright agent, ready to save the world. The puppy learning to be the scary dog. He would grow and learn, bark and bite. Outsmart the worst of his enemies to avoid violent attacks. But the dog would soon grow old and weary, before turning wild, now only using his teeth and nails to survive. Eventually, someone younger would overcome him and leave him for dead.

Or maybe, the young pup would keep his nails clipped and follow his iconic kind heart, only to be machinated by his human, his owner. Collared and obedient, the dog would lose its life, its sole, and just be a domesticized, mindless pet.

Chuck was too good for either option, no matter how destined the puppy was to become the dog.

She tried to imagine Chuck in ten years as a serious, hardened agent. But she couldn't. She couldn't see him killing and taking names, returning only to travel and kill again, like a murderous nomad. It seemed, the only person she could imagine doing that in ten years, was herself or the man who stood before her.

But Chuck wasn't like her or Bryce, and she wouldn't want him to be. She looked down at her hands, unwittingly picking at her fingernails as she softly replied, "I suppose it would."

"That's what I thought." It was quiet again, but she dare not say anything to further unravel him. He was clearly going through something, and she felt powerless to help him.

He finally looked up from his lap and made eye contact. "Hey Sarah?"

"Yeah?"

"If you could do anything to save a friend from a huge mistake, even if it would cause them to hate you for the rest of their life, would you do it?" As he spoke, his face held some unrecognizable emotion, maybe hope, maybe sadness, but definitely resignation.

He was being annoyingly cryptic, and frankly making her nervous with his questions. "C'mon Bryce, what is this about?"

"Just, please, answer the question," his tone was now pleading, so she decided to relent.

"This mistake, would it be fatal?"

He paused briefly, contemplating his answer. He nodded firmly. "Definitely."

"Then yes, to save a friend, I would. If you really think you can save your friend's life, Bryce, then do it. Do what you think is right."

He let out a breath and his shoulders visibly lowered. It seemed she provided him with the approval he needed to put whatever plan he had into action.

* * *

**Roble Hall**

**23:37 PST**

Later that night, Sarah returned to her dorm room that she had stayed at since she was a freshman. She had always prided herself in being a GDI – she rarely got along well with other women, and the Greek life held no appeal to her. However, she came to regret her decision to not spring for an apartment this year since meeting her bubbly and friendly roommate.

She didn't remember her roommate's name well; just that it started with an H and sounded very valley-girl to her. What she did know was that her roommate's preferred extra-curricular activity was spending time with various men around campus. And she did this. A lot. Sarah liked to call her Hester, because she reminded her of the famous adulteress from _The Scarlet Letter_.

Thankfully, Hester rarely brought her companions to their room, so most of the time, Sarah was alone. It was actually very convenient for her, since she didn't have to constantly work around an unsuspecting roommate like Bryce did.

She settled down and spent a little time reading for her literature class and completing her other essays before quickly checking her email for any updates. She noticed an encrypted message from Bryce that contained five words, but they held little meaning to her. They read:

_Agent Victor Krum_

_Volkoff Industries_

* * *

A/N 2: Okay, apology time. I'm sorry for the long wait. If you want an explanation, I'll just say this: right after posting chapter 2, a whole lot of crap from RL came at once, and two weeks after I was supposed to post, I was so out of the habit that I stopped. Thank you to those that tried to encourage me to write again, and once again, I'm sorry for not posting for such a long time. That being said, I do plan to continue this story, hopefully without four months in between updates.

A large part of this chapter was inspired by a review. I have the plot in order, but reviews can influence the story. So, leave me your thoughts, I will always read and appreciate every review. Also, I wanted to ask, do you prefer shorter or longer chapters?


End file.
